At nine thirty at night, the almost 15,000 spectators who crowd the two rings of Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena get up and greet as the speaker recites a long list of hits, nine of them in Australia, and how he ends and publishes Hospitable Welcome back, Novak Djokovic, the noise breaks out: “Ooo-eeeeé, oeeeeé, oeeeeé, oeeeeé… No-leeeeee, No-leeeeee!”. He greets victoriously, thanks and thanks and before he spends half an hour signing autographs, balls, hats and shirts, he announces: “Incredible atmosphere, thank you everyone. I am very fortunate to be in Australia on the track that has been the most successful of my career, the most extraordinary of my life. If I had to choose conditions, it would be at Rod Laver Arena at night,” he specifies; “I’m thrilled with how I played in the third set. In the second I had ups and downs and I have confidence in Roberto, who I train with a lot in Spain. He deserves recognition because he’s a great guy.”
In front of this photo, the 21-year-old champion peeks sheepishly from the dressing room entrance, returning 695 days later to step onto the track he made for himself and returns to (6-3, 6-4 and 6- 0 to Roberto Carballés from Granada, after 2h 02m) after missing the last move when he blew himself up straight; You know, the refusal of the vaccine and the grotesque episode upon entering the country involving a double arrest, final deportation and an attempt to clean up the mess – to which the Australian Tennis Association contributed by assuring them that it was green Reisen had the light for this – in a diplomatic conflict with his family in front of the gates of the parliament in Belgrade; Remember, the father with a megaphone in hand and forcing the speech, comparing his son to Jesus Christ and qualifying him as “the Spartacus of the free world”. Later interviews with the athlete’s letter to explain himself well that the world had not fully understood his message and that therein lay the problem; It’s not that he wasn’t supportive or posed a “public health threat”, as the Australian court found, but that his holistic spirit told him the injection wasn’t good for him; it just didn’t suit his sculpted body of a top athlete.
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“I’m not against vaccinations, but I’ve always defended the freedom to choose what you put into your body. The principles of the decisions I make about my body are more important than any title,” he told the BBC in February, a month after being evicted from Oceanian country. “It’s extra motivation, that’s for sure. It will serve as fuel for me,” he continued on National Television of Serbia (RTS) three days later, intending to (sportily) get even with all those who flagged up the election and defaced it; after all, he was (and still is) the only player in the world’s top 100 not to have an injection, preventing him from playing in Melbourne – where he reversed the historic 20 Greats tie with Rafael Nadal, now 22 could do – 21 for the Spaniard – and also at Indian Wells, Miami, Montreal, Cincinnati and New York, who knows, if not at Roland Garros (which ended up letting him in after all).
Serbian Novak Djokovic during the game MARTIN KEEP (AFP)
That is, the ideology ahead and, in parallel, a substantial renunciation of victories, prizes and points, which bursts in the places that opened the doors to it. They did it in Dubai, after 80 days (voluntarily) in the corner of thought, proud and redeemed. “There haven’t been many positive articles about this whole situation in the last month, but I think things are changing a bit. I have hope,” he declared upon his return, before completing the clay court tour and then disembarking at Wimbledon, his traditional cathartic spot. There he resurrected in 2018 after the crisis that narrowly separated him from his sport, he said at the time, and returned six months ago to take him to the green for the seventh time as a winner.”I just needed time to drive away the storm. Everything was complicated, but my tennis was always there,” he explained Balkans.
Regain lost time
The regulations prevented him from parading around New York, but he put the turbo on in the closing stages of the season: titles in Tel Aviv, Astana and another notch in the Masters Cup, for the first time in Turin; 19 wins and only two losses from September to November. “It’s a great relief and great satisfaction as I’ve been between pins all year waiting for permits,” he commented, knowing full well that the Australian Government had definitively lifted his three-year sentence and that he is playing this Open today could gives him a standing ovation.
“Idemooooooo!”, can be heard again and again on the return of this Tuesday, which is to the beat of the Let’s Go! Serbian and amidst the heat the front row of headquarters, full of his country’s flags, compatriots and compatriots shouting loudly, the lush Balkan community living in Melbourne – 95,000 people according to the 2021 census – covering him in an attempt to make up for lost time. Nole returns to his lane, the place where his game finds its maximum expression, exaggerated control of time, space and shot, millimeter precision on shots (part with an ace) and graceful movements as if he were an inch off the concrete would slide , on virtual ice skates. Carballés proposes a very dignified answer, but finds no hole. Of course it’s not easy. Little nothing or can do. The Spaniard shakes his head, that’s not possible. Djokovic has won 83 matches here, giving up only eight; Most recently in the round of 16 in 2018, when he was still suffering from his elbow and South Korean Hyeon Chung drove through him like lightning.
On this occasion his right thigh hurts and the video marker focuses on the bandage for a moment. How far is the damage? The fan is surprised these days. Only he knows.
The Belgrade landed in Australia on December 27 and has since kept a low profile, trying to ingratiate himself with the country he attempted to enter in 2022 with a form littered with irregularities, claiming he had a ( nonexistent) Exemption. The first stop on his return was Adelaida, where he added his 92nd trophy (the same as Nadal, also in this one) and left one of his pearls by ordering his agent and brother Marko to leave the pits at one of those crossings .of cords he usually has from time to time; He later traveled to Melbourne and these days he gave autographs and good gestures at the venue of the Open, took part in an exhibition and did a training session with the audience together with Daniil Medvedev. On both sides, him and the tournament, it was important to present a friendly picture.
Director Craig Tiley warned, “If they do [abuchearle] They will be thrown out.” So the applause spreads all evening and at its peak at 00.40 in the morning, with a significant reduction in capacity in the stands, because no matter how much Djokovic returns, tomorrow is a working day. The Serb, who in the second Round against the winner of Delien-Couacaud touches his heart and points to the sky; actually the roof because the downpour forced the closure. Here I am again they say. And in case there was any doubt how the track would react , his track cheers him: “No-le, No-le, No-le!”.
“THE LEG IS OK, IT WAS A GOOD TEST”
AC | Melbourne
Despite the fact that it was a specific day, Djokovic remained neutral throughout the night, perhaps wanting to disconnect from any emotional component that might bother him during the game. He performed rigorously and once he got into the rhythm he trained with an iron fist in a day that was a major physical test beyond the return.
He suffered a muscle injury in Adelaide last week and has since suffered from ailments that have affected his training. Against Carballés, however, he showed no sign of discomfort or limited play. “The leg is fine, not perfect, but I hope to get to that point. It was a good test. To be honest, I couldn’t do much work those days. The most positive thing is that the longer the game lasted, the better I felt,” he estimated.
The Serb praised Carballés, noting that he appreciated the welcome he received from the Australian crowd “very much”, even if his country’s colors dominated the stands. “I felt welcome, especially by the Serbian community, which is very large and has welcomed me in an incredible way”, Nole, 35 years old, wanted to specify; “I felt a lot of support and a lot of love. I couldn’t think of a better start.”
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