Novak Djokovic has already confessed to still getting anxious upon landing in Melbourne airport three years after he was deported from Australia.
The 24-time Grand Slam winner lost his visa before the 2022 Australian Open amid days of over Australia’s Covid entry policy and his unvaccinated status.
‘I have to be very open,’ Djokovic told Melbourne’s Herald Sun newspaper.
‘The two times I had landed in Australia the last couple of times, to pass through passport control and immigration – I had some trauma three years back.
“And still some of those lines remain when I go through passport control, and just see if somebody from immigration zone is on their way.
‘The man who checked my passport – are they going to get me, detain me again, free me? I have to say I have that feeling”.
The Serb went back to Melbourne Park after the worst of the pandemic in 2023, winning his 10th Australian Open title.
“I don’t really have grudges at all, honestly,” the 37-year-old said. “I don’t hold a grudge. The next year I was all over and I won.
‘My parents and the entire staff were there and that was literally one of the best feelings wins I’ve ever had based on all that happened the year before.
World No 7 Djokovic, who will be trying to claim his 25th major title when the 2025 Australian Open opens next Sunday.