Australia's government cancelled Novak Djokovic's visa for a second time Friday as it sought to deport the tennis superstar after he arrived in the country without a Covid-19 vaccine. Immigration Minister Alex Hawks said he acted on "health and good order grounds, on the basis that it was in the public interest to do so". Prime Minister Scott Morrison's government "is firmly committed to protecting Australia's borders, particularly in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic," Hawks said in a statement. The cancellation effectively means Djokovic would be barred from a new Australian visa for three years, except under certain circumstances. The visa decision put the Serbian world number one's dream of a 10th Australian Open title and a record 21st Grand Slam in peril. Djokovic is the tournament's top seed and had been practicing on the Melbourne Park courts a few hours earlier. The megastar flew into Melbourne airport on January 5 claiming a vaccine exemption because of a positive PCR test result on December 16. 'All fools' Border agents rejected his exemption, tore up his visa and placed him in a notorious Melbourne detention center where he spent four nights. The Australian government insists a recent infection does not qualify as a vaccine exemption for foreign nationals trying to enter the country. Djokovic's top-flight legal team dramatically overturned the visa decision because border officials at the airport had failed to give him the agreed time to respond. The visa battle with Djokovic is politically charged in Australia, which has endured nearly two years of some of the toughest coronavirus restrictions in the world. General elections must be called by May. Some tennis players say Djokovic should now be allowed to play, but not all have been supportive. World number four Stefano Tsitsihar criticized his behavior. "For sure, he has been playing by his own rules," Tsitsihar said in an interview with Indian broadcaster Won. Nearly everyone in the Australian Open had been vaccinated, Tsitsihar said. But others "chose to follow their own way, which kind of makes the majority look like they're all fools". 'Misinformation' As the Omicron variant raced through Australia's population, Djokovic's actions came under greater scrutiny. The tennis ace described reports about post-infection outings without a mask in Serbia as "misinformation" in an Instagram post Wednesday. On the day of his claimed positive test in Serbia, he attended a ceremony to honor him with stamps bearing his image. The following day, he attended a youth tennis event. He appeared at both, apparently without a mask. Djokovic said he only received the PCR test result after going to the children's tennis event on December 17. Djokovic blamed his support team for this. "My agent sincerely apologizes for the administrative mistake in ticking the incorrect box," he said. As Covid-related hospitalizations rise in Melbourne, the Victorian state government said Thursday it would cap capacity at the Australian Open at 50 percent. In fact, social media posts and reports show he flew from Serbia to Spain during that period. Djokovic was detained for days at an immigration hotel, before his visa was reinstated by Judge Kelly, who ordered his release, ruling that border officials ignored correct procedure when he arrived.
But on Friday evening in Melbourne, Mr Hawke again cancelled Djokovic's visa under separate powers in Australia's Migration Act.
The act allows him to deport anyone he deems a potential risk to "the health, safety or good order of the Australian community", however Djokovic can still appeal this.
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