Australian authorities intend to order the return of world tennis number one Novak Djokovic from detention as early as Saturday morning, government lawyer Stephen Lloyd announced on Friday.
The government wants the Serb to be released from detention only to attend, in the offices of his lawyers and under the surveillance of border police officers, the online court hearings concerning his case, Lloyd said. .
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Djokovic will not be deported from Australia until justice is final, Mr Lloyd had previously assured during a hearing before a judge in Melbourne.
This Victoria State judge, Anthony Kelly, announced on Friday that he was stepping down in favor of Australian federal justice, despite objections from the player’s lawyers who said they feared a slowdown in the proceedings.
Judge Kelly was seized by Djokovic’s lawyers with a view to blocking the cancellation of the player’s visa, decided for the second time by the Australian Minister for Immigration on Friday.
Djokovic admitted to having incorrectly completed his declaration of entry into Australia, and not having followed the isolation rules after testing positive for Covid-19 in December – contamination he hoped would allow him to benefit an exemption to enter Australia without being vaccinated.
“Nole” had been turned away on his arrival in Melbourne on January 5 and placed in a detention center. But his lawyers had obtained from Judge Kelly on January 10 that he reinstate his visa and order his immediate release.
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke, making use of his discretionary power in the matter, however canceled Djokovic’s visa once again on Friday “on grounds of health and public order”.
The 34-year-old was set to run for a 10th Australian Open title, which starts on Monday, and a 21st Grand Slam victory, which would be a record.
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