“I’ve never offended or tried to be disrespectful” Novak Djokovic urges officials in the Australian government to give him a chance
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Novak Djokovic
In Australia, former World No.1 Novak Djokovic has achieved a lot of success, having won nine Australian Open championships, the most by any player to date. However, in the same country, the Serbian has also faced plenty of hardships and humiliation, the 2022 episode when he landed in Melbourne with a COVID-19 vaccine exemption and was later deported being the prime example.
In a recent interview to Serbian media outlet Sportal, Djokovic expressed how he respects Australia as a tennis nation and their point of view in relation to him and the world situation.
“Some of the biggest tournaments in the world are held there… I respect that everyone has a different way of thinking in relation to my situation and my circumstances. After all, I have never offended anyone or ever tried to be disrespectful in any way. I always tried to show that it is important for everyone to have the right and freedom of choice,” said Djokovic.
The Serb also recently revealed that his lawyers are in talks with Australian Open authorities to reverse his three-year ban from entering the country.
“For the choices I made, I new there would be certain consequences like not going to America, and that is it. For Australia it was a different case, I had the exception, but in the end it did not work out. We know what happened, let’s not go back. This time I am waiting for the permission again. It is a good thing that they have now opened the borders for the unvaccinated foreigners traveling to Australia. I have that ban, I hope it will be lifted. As I said, it is not in my hands, I hope the people in the Australian Government will give a positive answer, that is all,” he added.
Novak Djokovic talks about countless betrayals in 2022 and how he is now viewing them as valuable lessons
Djokovic also opened up in the interview on how many masks have fallen in terms of people’s behavior towards him and he is learning how to deal with those kind of people better from hereon.
“It was a very interesting year, peculiar,” Djokovic said. “I always strive to draw positive things from whatever the experience is, that is part of my character and my approach to life. I know that everything that happened in Australia and afterwards – the way people have treated me, which did not feel nice and it is something I have never experienced before in my life – has helped me to learn some valuable lessons. Lessons about myself, about life and about the way I should move on in this world, especially in the tennis ecosystem.”
“Many masks have fallen, so to say – throughout this process, it was interesting for me to observe the way some people behaved towards me this year. I keep going, motivated and inspired,” he added.
Also Read: Novak Djokovic expresses opinion on whether Carlos Alcaraz deserves World No.1 spot
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Ashish Maggo
(191 Articles Published)