"Personal agreements don't give an athlete the right to cross the border" - Andrey Rublev on Novak Djokovic's visa controversy
Andrey Rublev recently gave his thoughts on Novak Djokovic's visa eligibility, which has caused plenty of controversy in the lead-up to this year's Australian Open. Rublev stated that no player would want to be in the situation that the World No. 1 currently finds himself in, while at the same time stressing the importance of respecting the law.
Djokovic landed in Melbourne last week after being granted a vaccine exemption from the Victoria State government, but was detained at the airport. The Serb then had his visa revoked by Australian Border Force officials, following which his lawyers successfully challenged the ruling in court.
Djokovic is currently unvaccinated, as per the documents submitted by his legal team. Australia's immigration officials still have the power to deport him, but they haven't arrived at a decision yet.
Speaking to a Russian publication on Thursday, Andrey Rublev claimed that Novak Djokovic's personal beliefs about the COVID-19 vaccine wouldn't necessarily be grounds to enter Australia. The Russian also lamented how Djokovic's visa row has overshadowed everything else, which he believes isn't good for tennis.
"Personal agreements do not give an athlete the right to cross the border, the law of the country is the law," Rublev said to TASS. "Because the law of the country is the law - local residents and those who come live according to it. None of us would want to get into such a situation; I can only shrug and regret, that instead of tennis now everyone is discussing such things."
"The situation with Novak Djokovic is really very complicated" - Andrey Rublev
During the interaction, Andrey Rublev also pointed out that he had no problem entering Australia since he is vaccinated. He went on to admit that he didn't have "all the details" about Novak Djokovic's situation, which he called "very complicated".
"I didn’t have any problems with entry, since I’m vaccinated," Rublev said. "The situation with Novak [Djokovic] is really very complicated. We don’t know all the details. On the one hand, there is a federal law of the country (Australia - TASS note), on the other hand, there are personal agreements between Novak and the tournament."
It should be noted that Novak Djokovic is one of the very few players in the men's top 100 to not have vaccinated themselves against COVID-19 yet. Many believe the Serb's vaccine hesitancy is the root cause of his troubles, which might come to the fore again at other tournaments this year.
Andrey Rublev, on his part, had acknowledged late last year the importance of getting the jab. Rublev himself took the COVID-19 vaccine during the off-season, but contracted the virus shortly after that.
With his comments, the Russian has joined Stefanos Tsitsipas as one of the few top players to have spoken out against Novak Djokovic. Rublev and Tsitsipas are in a minority though; many of the Serb's peers have come out in his support over the last few days.