Tennis: All Purpose Tennis Thread XIV

[kihei]

It's been two hours since Papa Nole's statement, and I can see large groups of Serbians gathering in the streets of downtown Toronto ready for battle....or, maybe, that's a hockey crowd.

 

[MsMeow]

He's going home! Apparently it's official!

 

[John Price]

 

[Beau Knows]

Somehow I doubt this is the end of this.

 

[John Price]

 

[kihei]

Thousands of Harry Potter cloaking devices disguise the actual number.

 

[kihei]

Somehow I doubt this is the end of this.

Probably not, but it is hard to see Aussie politicians compromising now. At the best of times I don't think Aussies have any tolerance for queue jumpers. Just not fair dinkum.

 

[Beau Knows]

It would be quite interesting if Nadal managed to win here, he'd be at 21 with the French Open up next.

 

[Novak Djokovic]

What a gong show, but mad respect to Australia for following through.

 

[The Shrike]

The rules are the rules, so I don't question the right of the Australian government to make this decision, but wow, they could have told him before he got on the plane.

 

[kihei]

Where this thing may have real feet is not so much on Nole per se but on how those two "blind" adjudication committees reasoned this player deserved an exemption. I think the decision to grant an exemption is what will really be under the microscope now in Australia.

 

[kihei]

The rules are the rules, so I don't question the right of the Australian government to make this decision, but wow, they could have told him before he got on the plane.

My guess is that Nole's team reasoned that with the exemption they were safe to apply for a visa. What they may have not figured was that Nole would have to justify the exemption at the border. Like, "oh, you want proof???"

 

[MsMeow]

Djokovic never said it was a medical exemption in his tweet. I think he knew that he and his camp were trying to get through on different grounds.

 

[CupofOil]

All this could have been avoided if he simply got the vaccine.

It's his choice not to which is fine but it's also Australia's choice to kick him the F out because he doesn't meet vaccine requirements that regular people have to abide by. The fact that he, and his "team", even pushed it this far is asinine. He's just looking worse and worse the last few years, chopping away at his legacy little by little.

 

[MsMeow]

Christine Brennan was on CNN about 15 minutes ago and blasted him with a big smile on her face. I was quite surprised.

 

[Cruor]

Djokovic comes across as such a massive clown. Here's my favourite piece on him from 2013:

Novak Djokovic, the Third Man

 

[Filppula]

What a gong show, but mad respect to Australia for following through.

I couldn’t be more embarrassed by my country. This is the final straw for me.

 

[PanniniClaus]

Srdan wants to take to the streets does he? I for one would love to see that... Trying to behave here. It's tough...

Just get vaccinated you idiot... like the rest of the tour members have to do.

 

[Filppula]

Pretty sad state the word is in. Very, very sad. Don’t think people realise what’s actually happening.

 

[Foppberg]

Srdan wants to take to the streets does he? I for one would love to see that... Trying to behave here. It's tough...

Just get vaccinated you idiot... like the rest of the tour members have to do.

Or if you choose not to, don't say for the last year "it's my personal, private medical decision." and then humblebrag the fact that you got an exemption to play in the Australian Open. Talk about a hypocrite.

Pretty sad state the word is in. Very, very sad. Don’t think people realise what’s actually happening.

What's that?

 

[Panteras]

Wow I def did not take Nole to be some anti-science/vaxxer nut job. Eff him then.

 

[kihei]

While Novak should have been more transparent about why he received a visa under these circumstances, now the shoe has to be on the other foot--Australian officials need to provide information about why Nole has been denied playing in the Open while other players with a medical excmption will play? What suddenly made his case different once he got to the border? This decision has to be based on more than a visa technicality, so what is the reason?

 

[Cruor]

While Novak should have been more transparent about why he received a visa under these circumstances, now the shoe has to be on the other foot--Australian officials need to provide information about why Nole has been denied playing in the Open while other players with a medical excmption will play? What suddenly made his case different once he got to the border? This decision has to be based on more than a visa technicality, so what is the reason?

Who has been allowed to play with an exemption? Tennys Sandgren had the good decency to not seek a medical exemption. We know that the Indian kid didn't get one since he couldn't get vaccinated.

 

[kihei]

Who has been allowed to play with an exemption? Tennys Sandgren had the good decency to not seek a medical exemption. We know that the Indian kid didn't get one since he couldn't get vaccinated.

I don't know who specifically has been allowed to play as I don't think that information has been released. I'm going on this line from The Guardian: "Tiley said 26 people associated with the Australian Open applied for a medical exemption to come to the tournament, but only a handful were granted." So it appears some players other than Nole have received such an exemption.

 

[Cruor]

I don't know who specifically has been allowed to play as I don't think that information has been released. I'm going on this line from The Guardian: "Tiley said 26 people associated with the Australian Open applied for a medical exemption to come to the tournament, but only a handful were granted." So it appears some players other than Nole have received such an exemption.

Okay so could it be that Djokovic's so called exemption was...bullshit?