Serbia PM: Country fully behind Djokovic

Serbian prime minister Ana Brnabic on Saturday said the "fight continues" to help tennis star Novak Djokovic who has been confined to an immigration detention hotel in Melbourne after being denied entry into Australia.

The No. 1-ranked Djokovic was denied entry late on Wednesday after border officials canceled his visa for failing to meet its entry requirement that all non-citizens be fully vaccinated for COVID-19.

Brnabic said she had spoken to Australian foreign minister Marise Payne and had received positive feedback about the tennis player's demands.

According to Brnabic, Djokovic will now receive gluten free food that he demanded, and has also been given a laptop and sim card to stay in touch with his family.

The prime minister said Serbia was fully behind Djokovic, and that the government will do anything to make the ordeal easier on him.

"It is a difficult situation," she said. "We are doing our best and I hope Novak can see that his country is behind him."

Djokovic was given a medical exemption backed by the Victoria state government and Australian Open organizers on January 1, based on information he supplied to two independent medical panels, and he was approved for a visa electronically.

But it has since emerged that the Victoria state medical exemption, allowed for people who tested positive for the coronavirus within the last six months, was deemed invalid by the federal border authorities.

Djokovic has been confined to an immigration detention hotel in Melbourne, where he's been preparing for the legal challenge against his visa cancellation in the Federal Circuit Court on Monday.

The Australian Open starts a week from Monday on January 17.

Djokovic is the defending champion and has won the Australian Open men's singles title nine times.

He has 20 Grand Slam singles title, a men's record he shares with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

IMAGE: AP