Novak Djokovic has made clear he wants to move on from last year’s deportation debacle – even if he’ll never forget it.
But would the Australian Open crowds feel the same way? It was one of the big unknowns ahead of this year’s tournament: would the nine-time champion be applauded or abhorred?
Serbian fans at Rod Laver Arena in support of Novak Djokovic.Credit:Getty
After all, it was only a year ago that 71 per cent of Australians agreed the Serbian should be sent home after he tried to enter the country without a COVID-19 vaccination.
Despite his unprecedented record at Melbourne Park, Djokovic has never enjoyed the kind of crowd support bestowed on the likes of Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal. So it has gone around the world throughout his career.
He was warmly welcomed in Adelaide two weeks ago where he won the Adelaide International 1 and notched up his 92nd tour title – though that was no guarantee of how he would go in Melbourne, where COVID-19 politics were felt most fiercely of all.
Novak Djokovic returns to Rod Laver Arena.Credit:Getty Images
But Djokovic was uniformly cheered at his practice match against Nick Kyrgios last week, and at Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday night, there could be no doubt that Australians have forgiven and forgotten whatever gripes they may have once had with the king of Melbourne Park.
The near-full stadium erupted as Djokovic returned to his most successful court for the first time in two years. The late hour was no deterrent; Djokovic and his Spanish opponent Roberto Carballes Baena walked on at 10.30pm, having been delayed by the long-running earlier matches.
Most of the crowd stood to applaud their arrival. Serbian fans were out in force, of course, waving flags and chanting the customary “No-le” chant. The whole crowd was supportive, except for a few errant boos and a man who yelled “You’re a wanker, Novak” seconds before the opening ball.
The fans kept up their warm reception throughout the first set – especially as Djokovic took five points in a row to overcome a 0-40 deficit and hold serve at 2-2, and then quickly go up a break.
It was exactly as Djokovic’s friend John Jeremic of the Serbian Council of Australia had expected. Waiting for the match to start outside Rod Laver minutes earlier, Jeremic told the Herald and The Age he believed the vaccination saga had actually endeared Australians to the nine-time champ.
Novak Djokovic took the opening set 6-3 in his return to Melbourne Park.Credit:Getty
“He stood his ground and I think a lot of people respect that,” Jeremic said. “The Aussie thing is ‘don’t spit on us, we don’t want to be trod on’, and if we have a principle we’ll stand for it.
“I think everyone’s over the rules, society has moved on, and they just want to forget about it.”
It has been much remarked upon that 12 months ago, players had to be vaccinated to enter the country, but this year, they can play while COVID-positive.
But if that’s a marker of how much we’ve changed in a year, so is our refreshed attitude to the undisputed king of Melbourne Park.
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