- Novak Djokovic is going to be deported from Australia because of visa issues related to COVID-19.
- It had been reported that Djokovic had obtained an exemption to play at the Australian Open.
- Djokovic was held at the airport for hours after obtaining the wrong kind of visa.
Australia has revoked tennis star Novak Djokovic's visa and plans to deport him ahead of the Australian Open tournament, a source close to the tournament told Reuters.
The tennis star is planning to appeal his visa cancellation, the source told Reuters.
Djokovic was previously granted a medical exemption to Australia's COVID-19 vaccine mandate so he could compete in the Australian Open.
According to Paul Sakkal, a political reporter for Australian newspaper The Age, Djokovic spent hours at Melbourne's airport after it emerged he had the wrong kind of visa when he landed late Wednesday night local time.
Sources told The Age that the visa Djokovic had been approved for didn't allow COVID-19 vaccine medical exemptions.
Djokovic hasn't disclosed his vaccination status. In April of 2020, he had said he was "opposed" to vaccines.
Djokovic's father told Serbian media in a statement read on-air on Australian news show Sunrise that his son was being held "captive."
"If they don't let him go in half an hour, we will gather on the street — this is a fight for everyone," Djokovic's father had said.
Djokovic tied Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal last year with 20 grand slams, the most of all-time. He has won the Austrlian Open a record nine times.