By Sudipto Ganguly and Sonali Paul and Loren Elliott
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – World number one tennis player Novak Djokovic left Australia on Sunday after a court upheld a decision to cancel his visa, ending days of controversy over rules for entry to the country due to Covid-19 and his status of not having been vaccinated.
The unanimous decision by three Federal Court judges was a final blow to the Serb’s hopes of chasing his record 21st Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, which officially begins on Monday.
The tennis player headed to Melbourne airport a few hours later. Federal agents escorted him and his staff from the lounge to the departure gate, from where he boarded an Emirates flight from Melbourne to Dubai. The flight took off shortly after 11 pm local time (9 am Brasília time).
Djokovic said he was extremely disappointed because the decision meant he could not participate in the tournament.
“I respect the court’s decision and will cooperate with the competent authorities regarding my departure from the country,” he said in a statement, also wishing the best for the tournament.
(Reporting by deLoren Elliott, Sudipto Ganguly, Ian Ransom in Melbourne; John Mair and Renju Jose in Sydney)
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