Novak Djokovic has reiterated his earlier comments that he bears no hard feelings on his return to Australia after his visa cancellation and subsequent deportation in January ahead of the Australian Open tennis tournament.
Djokovic was deported almost 12 months ago after arriving unvaccinated against COVID-19 at a time when the country was still subject to strict quarantine regulations and proof of vaccination.
Those regulations have since been lifted and in November, the Australian government overturned the three-year ban that came with Djokovicโs deportation and granted him a visa to return for the Australian Open beginning Jan. 16.
Djokovic arrived back in Australia on Tuesday ahead of the Adelaide International, where he is scheduled to play next week.
Read more: Djokovic expected to be granted visa to compete in Australian Open
โItโs great to be back in Australia,โ he said Thursday. โItโs a country where Iโve had tremendous success in my career, particularly in Melbourne. Itโs by far my most successful Grand Slam. Iโm hoping that everything is going to be positive. Obviously (fan reaction) is not something that I can predict.
โIโll do my best to play good tennis and bring good emotions and good feelings to the crowd.โ
Djokovic said he still has difficulty forgetting his deportation.
โObviously what happened 12 months ago was not easy for me, for my family, team, anybody who is close to me. Itโs obviously disappointing to leave the country like that,โ he said.
Read more: Double-fault: Visa revoked again, Djokovic faces deportation
โYou canโt forget those events. Itโs one of these things that stays with you for I guess the rest of your life. Itโs something that Iโve never experienced before and hopefully never again. But it is a valuable life experience for me and something that as I said will stay there, but I have to move on.โ
Djokovic has won the Australian Open a record nine times, including the last three times he played. Rafael Nadal won the 2022 title in Djokovicโs absence.
Source: United News of Bangladesh