Melbourne (AP) – Novak Djokovic now knows the opponent in the first round at the Australian Open – but Immigration Minister Alex Hawke’s decision on his visa is still not.
The draw for the first tennis grand slam of the year, which was delayed by more than an hour, resulted in a duel with his compatriot Miomir Kecmanovic for the world number one. Whether it comes to this at the tournament that starts on Monday depends entirely on Hawke – and he apparently takes more time on the third day after Djokovic’s success in court.
Prime Minister Scott Morisson did not want to anticipate his minister at a routine press conference and refused to comment on the matter. “These are personal ministerial powers that Secretary Hawke can use and I will not comment on them at this time,” said Morrison in Canberra. According to a report in The Age newspaper, the decision will no longer be made on Thursday. The sheet referred to government circles.
Further no clarity about visa
On Wednesday it became known that new information from the lawyers of 34-year-old Djokovic had postponed the timeframe for Hawkes’ decision. It is still not known when, after days of tug-of-war over the Serbian visa, it will finally be clear.
Djokovic is not vaccinated against the coronavirus, his visa could be withdrawn by the government. The 34-year-old number one in the tennis world rankings was stopped last week on arrival at the airport and initially taken to a deportation hotel because the border officials did not have enough documents for his medical exemption. Djokovic successfully defended himself against the decision in court on Monday and has been training in Melbourne since then.
The Djokovic case is also explosive against the background that the state of Victoria, where the Australian Open is taking place, has had immensely high numbers of infections. On Thursday, more than 37,000 new cases were recorded within 24 hours. There were also 25 Covid-19-related deaths and 953 people were admitted to hospitals. Because of the rising Corona numbers, the regional government in Melbourne has announced that it will limit the number of spectators to the first Grand Slam tournament of the year to 50 percent of capacity.
Zverev meets Altmaier
Djokovic has already won the Australian Open nine times and is the defending champion. The record winner of the tournament could also become the sole record holder with 21 Grand Slam titles with another triumph this year.
The German number one, Alexander Zverev, is number three on the seeding list in the same half of the tournament as the Serb. As in the Olympic Games and the US Open, the two could only meet in the semifinals. Zverev meets Daniel Altmaier in a German duel in the first round.
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