Everyone’s happy the Joker, Novak Djokovic, is back in the pack

Rafa Nadal is glad Novak Djokovic is here; Tennis Australia is glad he is here; but above all the man himself is clearly happy to be here.

A far cry from the mood last year … Novak Djokovic is all smiles on the practice courts in Adelaide. Picture: Getty Images

The defending champion is glad he is here.

“Novak is here, (which is) good for tennis; it is good for probably the fans,” Rafael Nadal said.

“The best players on court is ­always better.”

Tennis Australia is pleased he’s here, and its chief Craig Tiley said he was again the player to beat at the Australian Open.

Above all, the man himself, Novak Djokovic, is clearly happy to be here, smiling and laughing his way through a training session at Memorial Drive in Adelaide as he sets himself up to dominate yet another Australian summer of tennis.

Rafael Nadal on Wednesday. Picture: AFP

It’s a far cry from the last time we saw Djokovic in January, face covered in a mask as he was driven to Melbourne airport to be ­deported from the country and banned from coming back for three years for his potential to incite “civil unrest” over the nation’s Covid vaccination regime.

But a question mark still hangs over whether the Australian people will truly welcome back the player to whom they have never really warmed, despite him winning the Australian Open a ­record nine times.

It may be that Djokovic’s treatment last year, when he was ­embroiled in an ugly legal stoush over his vaccine status, will finally turn the crowds in his favour.

Djokovic, along with undoubted fan favourite Nadal and Australia’s own opinion-divider Nick Kyrgios, are the three big drawcards for the Australian Open starting on January 16.

With Kyrgios a controversial last-minute withdrawal from the Australian team for the United Cup – an international mixed team competition starting on Thursday in which he was scheduled to meet Nadal – none of the three big guns will compete against each other until the season’s first Grand Slam.

While Djokovic, 35, was letting his tennis do the talking on Wednesday, Nadal was happy to give his views on his own future, and his competitors, after arriving in Sydney for the United Cup event.

Djokovic leaves the Park hotel in January 16 this year after his visa was cancelled. Picture: Getty Images

Asked if this might be his last Australian Open, he said he was a year-to-year proposition these days. “Hopefully not, but when you are at the age of 36, you never know when it will be your last one,” he said.

“I am not in that mood now, just trying to focus to play at the highest level possible and to give myself the possibility to keeping competitive.

“If that is the last time, let’s try to enjoy as much as possible and let’s try to create something special. I am happy doing what I am doing and hope to keep doing this.”

A tenth Australian Open win would put Djokovic on a par with Nadal’s 22 Grand Slams, a statistic inevitably front of mind for both players as they prepare for 2023.

But Nadal knows there are other threats, including Australia’s own Nick Kyrgios. “He can win in any tournament that he is playing,” Nadal said. “He has all of the talent and the weapons to win against any player.”

Police officers pepper spray supporters to clear a road for Djokovic's car in Melbourne in January. Picture: AFP

Kyrgios’s decision to pull out of the United Cup tournament at the last minute, reportedly due to an ankle injury, came as a complete surprise to his Australian teammates.

“We literally just found out 10 minutes ago,” Australian team captain Sam Stosur said on Wednesday as the team members gathered for a media call at Sydney Olympic Park.

Kyrgios generated further controversy by posting a selfie on Instagram on Wednesday as his shock withdrawal came to light, walking in Darling Harbour in the Sydney sunshine with the words “Beautiful Day” and a tongue-poking emoji added.

The extent of Kyrgios’s injury remains unclear, but Australian Open organisers will be desperate for him to recover over the next three weeks given his drawcard status among tennis fans.