Djokovic was booted from The Australian Open over his anti-vaccine views in a controversial decision by Australia’s immigration minister.
It comes as the international tennis event commences at Melbourne Park… where he had hoped this year to win his 21st Grand Slam singles trophy
Every January for over a decade Novak has been greeted by fans at Melbourne Park for the Australian open, signing autographs and taking selfies, but this time its a change of scenery.
Djokovic was deported on Sunday after losing a ten-day battle over his right to remain.
Instead of defending his Australian Open title as the grand slam began here in Melbourne, he posed for selfies with fans at Dubai airport as he made the long journey back to Europe.
He may have been all smiles, but he refused any questions about his visa debacle after his plan landed just after 5.30 am local time.
Where to next for the world number one?
This whole saga has ended hopes of defending his Australian Open title and the chance to win a historic twenty first grand slam.
It doesn’t appear he will be back down under any time soon… authorities earlier confirmed that the unvaccinated tennis star will ban him from Australia for up to three years.
However, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison later provided a glimmer of hope for Novak
He said to Australian radio station 2GB: “(The ban) does go over a three-year period, but there is the opportunity for them to return in the right circumstances and that would be considered at the time”
The French Open will commence in late may, is he likely to play at that grand slam?
As he flew home from Australia, doubts rise over whether Novak would be able to play in the French Open.
A member of the French Parliament said a new law that will exclude unvaccinated people from sports venues, restaurants and other public places will apply anyone who wants to play in the tournament.
So essentially, no vaccine, no play.
The next tournament on his calendar is likely to be in Dubai at the end of next month, where he will need to provide negative PCR tests before being allowed in the country.
For now, a warm welcome awaits the world number one in his home city, where he continues to receive overwhelming support.
In pictures: Serbians rally outside Belgrade's international airport for Tennis world number one Novak Djokovic's arrival after his deportation from Australia over his coronavirus vaccination status pic.twitter.com/5o8mzq8koD
TikTok users could soon find that the popular social media service is either under new ownership or could be outright banned in the United States.
President Joe Biden signed a bill into law that requires TikTok to find a new owner—or face a ban in the United States.
Over the past several months, Washington D.C. has been under pressure to ban the popular Chinese-owned social media app.
Lawmakers and security experts have long raised concerns that the Chinese government could tap TikTok’s trove of personal data about millions of U.S. users.
TikTok’s CEO said the bill is disappointing and reiterated that the company has committed to challenge it.
David Zhang from China Insider. joins Veronica Dudo to discuss
Threads, the social media platform owned by Meta, is gaining traction with a surge in daily active users, outpacing X in the U.S.
With Threads averaging 28 million daily active users compared to X’s 22 million, Meta’s ambitions to reach a billion users seem within reach despite a slowdown in growth. While X still boasts 550 million monthly active users globally, Threads’ focus on user experience and avoidance of real-time and political content could position it as a formidable competitor moving forward.
This weekend’s entertainment lineup has something for everyone.
Apple TV+ brings “Sugar,” a drama set in New York City, while “Civil War” offers historical intensity.
“Challengers” with Zendaya brings a saucy sport drama to life, and superhero buffs can catch the trailer for “Deadpool and Wolverine” for action-packed fun.
With options spanning drama, history, reality, and superheroes, there’s excitement in store for all this weekend.