The one thing we’re forgetting about Novak Djokovic

In the fog of court battles, mind-numbing legal argument, street protests, political posturing, buck passing and international outrage, one simple fact about the Novak Djokovic train wreck has been forgotten.

None of this would have happened if the Serbian star had just had the jab.

If Djokovic had lobbed up at Tullamarine Airport on Wednesday night last week and presented his certificate of vaccination, he would have been ushered to a luxury hotel rather than an airless interview room. By Thursday afternoon he would have been practising at Melbourne Park after a good night’s sleep, rather than sweating it out in an immigration hotel.

There would have been no court case, no massive legal bills, the protesters would have had to find something else to do with their time and none of us would known the name of the Serbian Prime Minister.

Letter writers to The Australian often get to the nub of these things a little more directly than those of us paid to explore such issues. And there’s no better example of that than Paul Brewer of Toowong in Brisbane, writing in response to Federal Circuit Court Judge Anthony Kelly’s question: “What more could this man have done?”

It’s pretty simple, says Brewer in a letter published on Tuesday, “he could have got vaccinated”.

By refusing to sully his temple of a body with the Pfizer or AstraZeneca jab, Djokovic is very much the odd man out, as confirmed by the ATP.

Novak Djokovic posted a picture of himself training early this morning. Picture: Instagram.

Of the top 100 men’s players, the organisation said in a statement on Tuesday, 97 are vaccinated. Djokovic is one of the holdouts, obviously; American Tennys Sandgren, whose vaxx views are well known, is probably another. Not sure about the third.

The ATP statement appeared initially to be supporting Djokovic and calling for clearer communication and application of rules relating to unvaccinated players. But it concluded by urging the vaccination of all players.

“ATP continues to strongly recommend vaccination for all players on the ATP Tour, which we believe is essential for our sport to navigate the pandemic,” says the statement. “This is based on scientific evidence supporting the health benefits provided and to comply with global travel regulations, which we anticipate will become stricter over time.”

Craig Tiley and those organising the Australian Open would do well to take note of this. In their enthusiasm to ensure that the world No.1 plays in their tournament, where he could possibly win a record 21st grand slam, they have forgotten the risks of exposing other players, support staff and spectators to the virus.

Cricket’s Big Bash League, the A-League Men’s and Women’s, the AFLW, the NBL and a host of other sporting competitions are currently reeling from the effects of Covid, with matches moved, postponed or cancelled and teams weakened when athletes test positive. Why on earth, in these circumstances, would you allow an unvaccinated player anywhere near your tennis tournament.

Particularly one who has demonstrated his blatant disregard for the seriousness of the virus.

In the heat of the first wave of Covid in 2020, when all tennis was shut down, Djokovic organised a rebel exhibition tournament where players competed in front of unmasked crowds during the day and danced on the tables at nightclubs after dark. Not surprisingly, Djokovic and almost everyone else involved tested positive for Covid.

Djokovic apparently tested positive again on December 16, but on December 17 he was photographed presenting awards to Serbian children. And the same day he was on social media launching a Serbian stamp featuring his image. Then on December 18 he was in the studio doing a photo shoot with L’Equip newspaper in Belgrade.

When grilled on these events by Australian journalists in Serbia late on Monday, Djokovic’s family abruptly walked out of a press conference.

When asked by a reporter “Was he at an event on the 17th of December in Belgrade?”, brother Djordje gave a wry grin before making a swift exit. “So, ah, this press conference is adjourned at the moment,” he said.

The fact that Djokvic’s cavalier behaviour after testing positive could have been endangering the lives of a bunch of Serbian children, a couple of photographers and all sorts of other people involved appears to have been lost on the player and his family.

And the fact that allowing unvaccinated players to take part in the Australian Open endangers the tournament and anyone who might attend has been lost on quite a few people.