Novak Djokovic’s Infamous Australian Open Saga Finds an Alleged Culprit According to Tennis Journalist (Exclusive)

Due to his anti-vaccination stance, Novak Djokovic has frequently found himself in controversial situations. Aside from becoming a target of scrutiny from the public, the Serbian tennis star also faced deportation as Australia revoked his visa. Reminiscing about his deportation saga, the renowned tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg recently issued some bold assertions.

Back in 2022, the current world No. 1 player couldn’t mark his participation in the Grand Slam event in Melbourne after he refused to take a jab. Shedding light on Djokovic’s ‘exemption’ in the past edition, Rothenberg recently opened up about how he believes that the Australian Open director threw the Serb under the bus during his deportation saga.

The renowned tennis journalist sheds light on Novak Djokovic’s vaccination saga

In an exclusive interview with EssentiallySports, the tennis bigwig said that he believes Novak Djokovic’s exemption from the 2022 Australian Open was ‘poorly calculated’ by the tournament’s director, Craig Tiley. Ben Rothenberg also claimed that the Serb was put up to fail miserably in the eyes of the Australian public for the same reasons.

He said, “I did think that everything that Craig Tiley set up as the Australian Open Director for his exemption in 2022. That’s sort of where I thought that was all very flimsy and very poorly calculated by Tiley and really set up Djokovic to fail massively in terms of the Australian public.”

While saying that he believes that the authorities should never have an exemption program period, Rothenberg added, “I mean, that was not that whether or not Djokovic qualified for it or not, there just should not have been an exemption program for this tournament, especially because of, you know, anyway.” Though he was in hot waters in 2022, Djokovic later received a warm welcome from the public in the very next season.

Djokovic’s return to Australian soil after his deportation saga

In a recent press conference, the 24-time singles Grand Slam champion revealed how he was welcomed with ‘open arms’ a season after his deportation saga. Despite all the controversies surrounding his anti-vaccination stance, the fans showcased a lot of support after Djokovic returned to Australian soil in 2023.

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He said, “But actually, people in Adelaide, because that’s where I landed first last year, welcomed me with open arms and lots of support and very kind reception.” Following his return to Australia, the ‘Djoker’ enjoyed title-winning runs in both the tournaments in the country, the Adelaide International and the Australian Open.

What do you think of the Serbian tennis star’s exemption from the 2022 Australian Open? Let us know in the comments section.

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