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The Queenslander had taken an indefinite break from the sport and signed with the Brisbane Heat for the inaugural season of the Women’s Big Bash League.

Barty was the first Heat player to clear the boundary rope in the WBBL, smacking a six against the Melbourne Stars on her way to a quick-fire 39 off 27 balls in the season opener.

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“I needed to take that time away,” Barty said in 2019.

“I feel like I came back a better person on and off the court, a better tennis player.

“For me, having that 18 months off was vital.”

Less than four years later, she was the No. 1 ranked tennis player in the world with a French Open title under her belt.

Barty’s rapid rise is perhaps epitomised best by a pamphlet from 2015, uploaded to Twitter following last week’s Australian Open final triumph over America’s Danielle Collins.

Just under seven years ago, school students in Graceville could book a private tennis lesson with Barty at the West Brisbane Tennis Centre for just $16.50 a session.

“Kids were pretty spoiled … I think it might cost a bit more than that now,” Barty’s childhood coach Jim Joyce told 4BC.

“She was coaching ladies, older women as well and was just loving it. I was going, ‘I’ve got to get her back (into playing pro tennis),’ but you couldn’t force her into it, it had to come from her.”

Barty gave Joyce a shout-out following her round three victory over Italy’s Camila Giorgi at Melbourne Park.

“The big fella’s actually surprised me today,” she said on Rod Laver Arena.

“Jim, my first coach, he flew down, and I saw him about an hour before my match. I said, ‘Mate, what are you doing here?’

“It was nice of him to be here.

“He challenged me to be the most complete player I could be.”

Barty returned from her tennis hiatus in 2016 with Craig Tyzzer serving as her coach. She has since won three grand slam singles titles and cemented her place among the modern greats of Australian sport.

“It would have been the biggest tragedy in tennis in Australia, if not sport, if she hadn‘t come back and played – and just never played again,” Joyce said.

“It would have been the biggest waste. I knew she had the ability … what a tragedy that would have been if she never played again.”

The hometown heroes — dubbed the “Special Ks” — stunned the sixth seeds 7-5 3-6 6-3 to move into the Australian Open doubles semi-finals and, as has been par for the course at Kyrgios matches this month, the crowd was going absolutely bananas.

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Plenty thought spectators went too far by jeering during points and when Venus and Puetz were serving, but Kokkinakis summed up the Special Ks’ attitude in a post-match interview when he told tennis fans in Melbourne: “Sink p**s and come here.”

It may have been a four-person contest but the friction between Kyrgios and Venus in particular was obvious to everyone. During the final game of the second set, the pair jawed at each other as Kyrgios complained to the umpire about the Kiwi repeatedly redoing his ball toss.

Venus chatted to Kyrgios as the Canberra product strutted around the court and then let out a huge, pointed roar while staring at the other side of the net when he and Puetz won five straight points to claim the set and send the match into a decider.

Kyrgios didn’t forget. He mocked the New Zealander’s ball toss in the third set by intentionally throwing balls away but he saved his most cutting blow for the very end.

With three match points on offer after serving the Aussie duo to 40-0 at 5-3 in the third, and with the crowd going ballistic, Kyrgios suggested Venus had gone all silent.

The 26-year-old cupped his left hand to his ear and said something to the effect of “I can’t hear you”.

A couple of points later and it was all over when Venus clunked a forehand into the net, sparking wild celebrations at Kia Arena.

Former Aussie star Sam Groth loved the byplay between Kyrgios and Venus.

“There was the occasional Kyrgios blow-up — he wasn’t extremely happy — then Michael Venus started giving it back to Nick as well,” Groth told Nine on Wednesday.

“He was getting caught up in the whole situation.”

Todd Woodbridge added: “I enjoyed Michael Venus coming back and actually antagonising Nick a little bit, because you get to see how Nick reacts.

“He doesn’t always like it. He loves to be the conductor of his on circus … the ringmaster. But if someone comes at him he gets a little bit gnarly. I thought that was as entertaining as everything else out there yesterday.”

Kyrgios and Kokkinakis have now knocked out the top seeds, 15th seeds and sixth seeds on their way to the semi-finals — and ruffled feathers along the way.

Some members of Croatian Olympic gold medallists Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic’s entourage threatened to fight Kyrgios after their match last week but the secret to the Special Ks’ success has been a refusal to be overawed by more experienced pairings with better rankings.

“To be brutally honest, I just don’t even worry,” Kyrgios said in a post-match press conference when asked how much research he and Kokkinakis are doing on their opponents.

“I didn’t even know who we played yesterday — I mean, two days ago.

“I didn’t even know but when I walked out there.

“I just know if we play our game and we can use the crowd, use the energy, serve well, worry

about us, don’t worry about the external, just control what we can control and we’ll be fine.”

Each match in their doubles campaign has ramped up and the brand new Kia Arena was treated to absolute madness.

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Their doubles battle against No. 6 seeded pair Tim Puetz, from Germany, and Michael Venus, from New Zealand went berserk when the Aussie duo took the opening set and it was completely off the rails by the time they wrapped up a 7-5 3-6 6-3 after more than two hours.

With the crowd pumped up, there was no way for officials to contain the mayhem with fans yelling out in the middle of points and even repeatedly in the middle of Venus’ service action.

There were a series of dramatic moments in the second set which further whipped the crowd into a frenzy inside Kia Arena.

And the Special K’s want the atmosphere to continue into the rest of the grand slam because, as Kyrgios eloquantly put it, the Aussies “want to win this f***ing thing”.

Kokkinakis added he wanted the crowd to “sink p*** and come here.”

“When we walk through that tunnel, there is no feeling like it. We don’t want anything else. This is perfect,” Kokkinakis said.

“I haven’t played in a doubles match, even a singles match with this kind of atmosphere.”

So semi-final opponents and third seeds Horacio Zeballos from Argentina and Spaniard Marcel Granollers may want to watch out.

It was a drama packed match which included Kyrgios being warned for time violations on his serve with a tactic of tossing up the ball several times before entering into his true serve motion.

That prompted an angry outburst from Venus who demanded chair umpire Eva Asderaki do something about it.

A short time later, Kyrgios was also seen complaining to the chair umpire about Venus’ serve — and the time he was taking in between points.

The pair were seen jawing away at each other multiple times in every service game towards the end of the second set.

The heated exchanges only further turned the crowd against Venus — who appeared to delight in the barrage of verbal abuse.

Former Aussie star Sam Groth was stunned watching the game from inside the court.

“This is unprecedented,” Groth said on Channel 9.

“Have you ever seen a tennis match go this way? I haven’t. Kyrgios and Venus are completely at each other right now here in the third set.”

Nine commentator Tom Rehn said: “This place has reached a level even we have not seen or heard before. Not sure I have ever seen anything quite like this”.

9 News Melbourne’s Corey Norris added: “If only all doubles matches were this spiteful! How bloody good. Love that Venus is giving it back to Kyrgios.”

However, many other commentators were scathing of the behaviour from the local fans — and Kyrgios’ exuberant reactions.

Veteran Australian journalist Monica Attard posted on Twitter: “The crowd behaviour made it unwatchable. What a disgrace. Do something @TennisAustralia @AustralianOpen”.

Sports media commentator John Dean wrote: “I have never seen a doubles game like this in my life. Insane”.

Nine Newspapers reporter Sam Phillips also described the atmosphere as “farcical” in a post on Twitter.

Sports broadcaster Mark Gottlieb pointed to the fact it had replaced the Nadal-Shapovalov match on the main Nine channels.

“It feels like there could dead set be a fight on the court just days after there was almost one in the dressing rooms. This match has gone off the rails,” he wrote.

“Justifies the decision to show the doubles over Nadal. This is must watch TV – like watching a car crash.”

The “Special K’s” had a packed house on Kia Arena losing their minds as the duo claimed a 6-4 4-6 6-4 win in front of a wild crowd.

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Before the match began, it was clear that Kyrgios and Kokkinakis were going to continue to play the entertaining tennis they had throughout the double fixtures so far.

Channel 9 cameras even caught the pair showing their … close relationship.

And the Kia Arena was full to the brim as Kyrgios and Kokkinakis continue to be a box office draw.

The crowd were vocal once again, trotting out the much-maligned “Siu”, the Seven Nation Army chant and making plenty of noise in a party atmosphere.

And they were treated to a belter of a match as it went the distance.

Coming after the reports of a near-fight in the locker rooms after ousting the top seeds in their last outing, the Aussies sent the packed house into raptures in the first set when they broke to take the first set 6-4.

But the dynamic Aussie duo hit some adversity in the second set when Behar and Escobar broke early in the second set on Kyrgios’ serve as the 15th seeds moved to 3-1.

The Aussies weren’t about to take it lying down though, hitting back to put it back on serve at 4-3 on a double fault.

Kyrgios, who has continued to play to the crowd, sprinted back to the player’s bench.

However the frustration started getting the better of Kyrgios in the tight match, as the star threw down his racquet in disgust after hitting a point into the net.

And Behar and Escobar hit back to claim the second set and send the match to a decider.

The “Special K’s” sent the crowd wild once again when a double fault on game point of the fifth game of the third set put the Aussies in the box seat.

The wild crowd had the commentators saying it was like a “Davis Cup doubles crowd” as the fans rode every point in the stadium and at home.

After the match, asked about taking out another seeded pair, the first question was about how hard it had been to overcome established doubles teams, to which Kyrgios joked: “I mean, it’s been pretty easy”, before hugging Kokkinakis.

“Today these guys were tough,” Kyrgios said. “They served really well, it was incredibly tough to get any rhythm on the return, but the energy with Thanasi, it’s always a pleasure to play with you brother. The atmosphere’s insane and you guys are unreal again.”

Asked about how long they had played together, having played juniors doubles in 2013, Kokkinakis had his shot at some zingers.

“I’ve known the big fella since he was a chubby kid from Canberra,” Kokkinakis began.

“He’s slim and looks good now. But we’ve been through a lot together and we play for fun but coming out here, we want to impress you guys. The atmosphere is unbelievable and the feeling we get when we walk though that tunnel, I was looking up at the stands before we’d even walked onto court and you can’t not get up for matches like this.”

The pair also wanted Craig Tiley to keep them out on getting the incredible support on the outside courts.

“We both lost early in singles but to come out here and have this atmosphere for a doubles match is insane, you don’t get it anywhere else in the world,” he said.

As for if their run would keep going, Kyrgios said: “We’re winning it”.

The result sees them play the sixth seeded pair of New Zealander Michael Venus and German Tim Puetz in the quarterfinals.

Just don’t call her a veteran.

The 32-year-old Frenchwoman burst onto the grand slam scene in 2005 when she played in her first French Open and has made the fourth round at every grand slam since but no further.

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But 17-years into her grand slam career, Cornet is on fire, having knocked out third seed Garbine Muguruza and now 29th seed Tamara Zidansek, after a comeback 4-6 6-4 6-2 win on Saturday.

While the tempers were running hot during the match as she had a run in with the umpire during the game, Cornet gave one of the best post-match interviews of the tournament after she was bathing in the glory of her victory.

Asked if today’s game was all about survival, particularly in the 34 degree temperature in Melbourne, Cornet laughed: “Mainly”.

“I didn’t miss this Australian heat, it’s so brutal,” she said. “God, playing midday like this, it’s all about surviving but I just can’t believe I won this match. I was 6-4 4-1 down and I couldn’t find a solution and Tamara was playing great tennis and I wasn’t playing my best. I just kept going and kept fighting and I put all the resilience I could into this match. It’s a magic win for me, and I’m so happy. It’s been 13 years since my first fourth round and I’m back in the fourth round in Australia like oh my god.”

In 2009 as a teenager, Cornet stunned by making the fourth round, her best result before this year.

Asked about achieving the result again as a “veteran” of the sport and what had she learned between her two Australia Open runs, Cornet said: “I hate this word but yes I am.”

“You have to keep working, keep believing in your dreams, keep loving the game. I was such a kid the first time I was here. I’ve just kept going all these years, working really hard every day and it’s really special to be back. I enjoy so much my time on court, I think that’s why I put everything I have, I put my whole heart and today it paid off.”

Cornet was also asked about the crowd and how they got behind her.

“I feel the love of this crowd and it’s so special, it’s pushing me all the time,” she said. “Eve though I’m not an Aussie and I’m French and I don’t even know if you guys like French people but you give me so much love and that’s what really pushed me through today so thank you guys for being here and hopefully you’ll be there in the next round.”

On top of all that, they jumped in late as today is her birthday and the crowd sang “Happy Birthday” as she was about to leave the court.

The interview quickly made it around the tennis world with some brilliant talking points.

It was far from all her own way as Zidansek led by a set and 4-1 in the second and appeared heading for the fourth round herself.

The tension was telling on Cornet as she raged at the umpire after copping a time violation at 4-all in the second set as the Frenchwoman tried to adjust to the angle of the sun.

Cornet didn’t agree, saying she was easily in position quick enough to beat the 25-second shot clock. “This is insane,” she said, before asking: “What is your problem with me?”

Cornet then marched from the baseline to the chair and gave the umpire a piece of her mind.

“Don’t say anything to me, just listen,” she said as part of her rant.

But while the tension of the comeback appeared to be getting the best of Cornet, she bounced back to claim the set and go on to romp home in the match.

Cornet will look to continue her giant-killing ways against 14th seed Simona Halep in the next round.

Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka and Alexander Zverev are also ones to watch on day five at Melbourne Park.

Meanwhile, Nick Kyrgios lost in four sets to Daniil Medvedev on Thursday night before the Russian took aim at the Rod Laver Arena crowd, who he accused of having a “low IQ”.

4th seed rages over toilet drama

Fourth seed Barbora Krejcikova has had to fight back to beat 26th seed Jelana Ostapenko in a tight battle to avoid being added to the seeded scrapheap.

While fifth seed Maria Sakkari and 24th seed Victoria Azarenka breezed through their matches, Krejcikova was immediately on the back foot, losing the first set 6-2.

But the Czech star and 2021 French Open champion bounced back, slogging out a hard four 2-6 6-4 6-4 win.

It wasn’t all her own way in the latter sets as Krejcikova copped a time violation after taking an eight-minute toilet break between the sets.

The issue came after last year’s US Open when Stefanos Tsitsipas took long breaks after every time he lost a set.

It saw the rule changed, only allowing three minute breaks to go to the toilet between sets.

When she came back Krejcikova tried to explain it, saying “you know why? Because I broke my necklace. I had to pick it up.

“And I’m getting a time violation. What’s next?”

It was just a warning so it didn’t cost her any points.

Commentator Chanda Rubin said the broken necklace “shouldn’t be a reason for more time”.

She was the first player at this tournament to cop a violation, althought it wasn’t too costly as it was her first for the match.

But it’s not the first time that Krejcikova has been part of a drama like this.

At the 2021 US Open, Krejcikova was labeled “unprofessional by Garbine Muguruza at 5-6 in the second set after winning the first and then leaving the court for nine minutes for treatment.

And as the temperatures have risen, so have the tempers.

American Reilly Opelka was also fuming against Canadian Denis Shapovalov after Greek chair umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore handed him a time voilation for taking too long to serve at 3-all in the first set.

“You’ve been on me since the second I walked out on the court. Literally,” a furious Opelka told the chair umpire.

“She’s cooked. Literally. I brought my pink bag and she’s like, ‘Oh no, turn around.”

To make matters worse, he lost the following point and the first set.

Day five schedule

Rod Laver Arena

From 11am: [24] Victoria Azarenka (BLR) defeated [15] Elina Svitolina (UKR) 6-0 6-2

[4] Barbora Krejcikova (CZE) defeated [26] Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) 2-6 6-4 6-4

[31] Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) vs [7] Matteo Berrettini (ITA)

From 7pm: [1] Ash Barty (AUS) vs [30] Camila Giorgi (ITA)

[28] Karen Khachanov (RUS) vs [6] Rafael Nadal (ESP)

Margaret Court Arena

From 11am: [21] Jessica Pegula (USA) defeated Nuria Parrizas Diaz (ESP) 7-6 6-2

[8] Paula Badosa (ESP) defeated Marta Kostyuk (UKR) 6-2 5-7 6-4

[23] Reilly Opelka (USA) vs [14] Denis Shapovalov (CAN)

From 7pm: Amanda Anisimova (USA) vs [13] Naomi Osaka (JPN)

Adrian Mannarino (FRA) vs [18] Aslan Karatsev (RUS)

John Cain Arena

Not before 1pm: [5] Maria Sakkari (GRE) defeated [28] Veronika Kudermetova (RUS) 6-4 6-1

Not before 4pm: [3] Alexander Zverev (GER) vs Radu Albot (MDA)

$220k payday shocks Aussie on live TV

There’s a reason Australia is falling for 24-year-old tennis gun Maddison Inglis — the girl from WA is just so down to earth.

The wildcard has cruised into the third round of the Australian Open and will play Kaia Kanepi tomorrow in a bid to continue her outstanding run in the tournament.

And with more rounds comes more prizemoney.

It’s an expensive profession to be a pro tennis player but grand slams definitely help fund career.

A first round exit sees players earn $103,000, but it quickly goes up the deeper you go.

A third round exit is worth $221,000, which can help set up a year, and a career.

But Australia’s newest tennis star was unaware of the prizemoney, until she was made aware mid interview on Channel 9.

“I didn’t know that. Wow that’s huge,” she said before trying to finish her sentence while addressing the prize money again.

“Sorry I didn’t know that at all,” she added. “Going into the matches I didn’t think about the money at all, which is a good thing.

“Leading into 2022 I need to find an external coach and that can be very expensive. And this takes a lot of stress off me having that money to start the year. Hopefully I’ll put it towards my tennis.”

Don’t change Maddy!

‘Beautiful’: Star’s almost perfect tribute

Victoria Azarenka was brilliant in her 6-0 6-2 demolition of 15th seed Elina Svitolina and had a great post-match interview as well.

The 24th seed paid tribute to the wheelchair tennis stars, including Australia’s own Dylan Alcott, and had some lovely words.

Only she didn’t quite get the 15-time grand slam champion’s name right.

“I just want to give a shout out to Dylan Scott, because he has been my inspiration for a while,” she said.

“I’m so proud how much involvement there is for him in Australia and those guys, the wheelchair tennis, deserve so much recognition. I just hope you guys come out and watch them because they are way better than us. That’s just my opinion. And I know it’s his last tournament and I can’t wait to see what he does next because he’s such an amazing personality, what a story, the resilience, the determination, he inspires me a lot.”

Alcott, who is going for his eighth straight Australian Open title, will retire from tennis after this years’ Australian Open.

Alcott quickly responded, tweeting: “@vika7 this made me cry! You are such a legend. Appreciate your words so much”.

However, he reposted his response a short while later.

‘Not good’: 15th seed crashes out in flames

Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka has made minced meat of 15th seed Elina Svitolina in a scary statement to the Australian Open.

The 24th seed was never troubled against the Ukranian, powering to a thumping 6-0 6-2 victory in just under over an hour, thanks only to a prolonged final service game which went to seven deuces.

It’s the fifth time the pair have ever met and Azarenka has a perfect record in the meetings.

But after four seeds in Garbine Muguruza (3rd), Anett Kontaveit (6th), Elena Rybakina (12th) and Emma Raducanu (17th) seed all crashed out on a wild day four, it just continue the rot for the higher seeds.

The first set was particularly brutal as Azarenka won 100 per cent of her points on first serve, wiping the floor with her opponent in no time.

‘Inexcusable’: TV disaster cops more flak

American TV network ESPN has come under fire for its coverage of the Australian Open and the hits kept coming on Friday.

Respected NFL writer Judy Battista said on Twitter she has “tried to figure out how to watch every day” but has had “no luck so far”.

Respected tennis insider Jon Wertheim, who was critical of ESPN on Thursday, tweeted: “When a (very fine) reporter for a designated sports network can’t find the coverage, what hope is there for a casual fan? 2022 is lost but @AustralianOpen cannot let this happen going forward.”

Tennis writer Matthew Willis responded: “It’s inexcusable. This stuff has such a long tail impact on tennis growth too, imagine the butterfly effect of that many fans (some of which are new and maybe fleeting to the sport) not being able to watch and deciding to do something else instead.”

Star’s grunting ‘100 per cent unecessary’

Australian tennis strategist Craig O’Shannessy says world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka — who survived a serving meltdown to progress to the third round — would be wise to ease off the grunting.

O’Shannessy, who has previously worked with Novak Djokovic, encouraged Sabalenka to make less noise and improve her game.

“Aryna #Sabalenka would be a better player in every way possible if she ditched the excessive grunting when hitting the ball. She already has the power. The noise at contact is 100% unnecessary,” he tweeted.

“I bet if Aryna #Sabalenka played some practice sets & experimented with making as little noise as possible at contact, she would uncover an improved, happier version of her game. It would also help her control her emotions. It’s a no-brainer, really.”

Star was Covid-positive when he arrived in Australia

Russian star Andrey Rublev has revealed he was Covid-positive when he flew to Australia.

The world No. 6 was allowed into the country amid fears his grand slam may have been impacted.

“I am not being tested personally now because I just got over the coronavirus,” he said.

“When I flew to Australia, I was still positive, but the level of Covid SS, as it is called, I will not lie, it was very low and not dangerous.

“I was allowed to enter the country. In addition, I spent more than 10 days in quarantine.”

He didn’t break any rules and all protocols were followed. It was suspected his positive test was the result of “viral shedding”.

Kyrgios detail catches attention of fans

Nick Kyrgios has been accused of not trying in the past but you couldn’t question his effort during a hard-fought loss to Daniil Medvedev in round two.

The Aussie was putting in the hard yards, leading some eagle-eyed fans to question if some hair dye was running onto his forehead — likening him to former Donald Trump confidante Rudy Giuliani.

Football reporter James Dodd tweeted: “Is that a bit of ‘Just For Men’ dribbling down Kyrgios’ forehead?”

Former AFL player Jason Gram wrote: “Kyrgios got a little bit of paint on top?”

Day five preview

Top seed Ash Barty and defending women’s champion Naomi Osaka can set up a mouth-watering last-16 clash as the Australian Open reaches the third round, with Rafael Nadal also in action as he targets a 21st Slam title.

World number one Barty, who has been in dominant form in 2022, faces the experienced Italian 30th seed Camila Giorgi to begin the night session on Rod Laver Arena.

Osaka, who won at Melbourne Park in 2019 and 2021, will simultaneously be playing Amanda Anisimova on the adjacent Margaret Court Arena.

Nadal faces dangerous Russian 28th seed Karen Khachanov in the late match, with the Spaniard warning that his best is still to come as he works his way back to peak form after an injury-hit 2021.

Barty, chasing a first title at her home Slam, has barely broken sweat so far, dropping only three games in two matches.

The Wimbledon champion won the warm-up Adelaide International with a serve that was untouchable, and it has been flawless so far in Melbourne as well.

“Just continually trying to make it a weapon,” she said of her serve, which has not been broken for 48 straight games stretching over five matches.

“I’m not the biggest girl out there, but I know I’ve got a sound technique and I know if I can get my rhythm right and use it effectively, it can be a weapon.”

Four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka says she has been taking unlikely inspiration during the first Slam of the year from maverick Australian Nick Kyrgios and Brit Andy Murray, who tweeted that he was enjoying watching her.

“Definitely means a lot. For me it was a really cool moment,” she said of Murray’s message.

Nadal’s path to become the first man to win 21 Grand Slams — he is tied on 20 with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic who are both absent — could see him meet Olympic champion Alexander Zverev in the quarter-finals.

But first he needs to dispatch Khachanov — with the prospect of another Russian, last year’s semi-finalist Aslan Karatsev, awaiting in the last 16.

“I think playing against Khachanov is going to be a big challenge,” said Nadal, who said he was not looking beyond Friday’s match.

“I never think that far. Just staying focused on my daily work, on what’s coming, and that’s it. One moment in time, that’s it.”

Third seed Zverev faces Moldovan qualifier Radu Albot out on “party court” John Cain Arena, while Italian seventh seed Matteo Berrettini takes on Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s draw.

The women’s action on Rod Laver begins with Belarusian former two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka taking on Ukrainian 15th seed Elina Svitolina.

They will be followed by the French Open champion and fourth seed Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic against Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko.

AFP

The three judges of the Federal Court’s full bench unanimously ordered the world No. 1 to leave Australia on Sunday and to pay all of Mr Hawke’s legal costs.

Justice Allsop on Sunday agreed with Mr Hawke, who had cited “health” and “good order” grounds in revoking Djokovic’s visa because the tennis star had not been vaccinated against Covid-19 and there was a fear he could incite anti-vaccination sentiment.

The reasons, published online on Thursday afternoon, refer to Djokovic’s power to influence young Australians in particular to reject the Covid-19 vaccines.

“An iconic world tennis star may influence people of all ages, young or old, but perhaps especially the young and the impressionable, to emulate him,” the document reads.

“This is not fanciful; it does not need evidence. It is the recognition of human behaviour from a modest familiarity with human experience.

“Even if Mr Djokovic did not win the Australian Open, the capacity of his presence in Australia playing tennis to encourage those who would emulate or wish to be like him is a rational foundation for the view that he might foster anti-vaccination sentiment.”

The judges also noted that it was obvious Djokovic was anti-vaccination.

“We reject the proposition that it was not open to the Minister to find or conclude that Mr Djokovic had a stance that was well-known on vaccination and that he was opposed to it,” the document reads.

The judges referred to a publication titled “What has Novak Djokovic actually said about vaccines?” which reported that, in April 2020, he said he was “opposed to vaccination”. “Although he had qualified this by saying that he was ‘no expert’ and ‘would keep an open mind’, he apparently said that he wanted to have ‘an option to choose what’s best for my body’,” the judges wrote.

“Mr Djokovic as a hero and an icon of freedom of choice in relation to being vaccinated.

“It was not irrational for the Minister to be concerned that the asserted support of some anti-vaccination groups for Mr Djokovic’s apparent position on vaccination may encourage rallies and protests that may lead to heightened community transmission.”

The judges also found Djokovic’s decision to attend an interview while Covid-positive was a bad omen for what may have developed in Australia.

Djokovic said he knew he had Covid-19 but went to an interview with a journalist because he “didn’t want to let the journalist down”.

The judges said: “There was evidence . . . that Mr Djokovic had recently disregarded reasonable public health measures overseas by attending activities unmasked while Covid-positive to his knowledge.

“It was open to infer that this, if emulated, may encourage an attitude of breach of public health regulations.”

The Serbian star made a statement after the decision by the Federal Court on Sunday.

“I’d like to make a brief statement to address the outcomes of today’s Court hearing,” he said. “I will now be taking some time to rest and to recuperate, before making any further comments beyond this.

“I am extremely disappointed with the ruling to dismiss my application for judicial review of the decision to cancel my visa, which means I cannot stay in Australia and participate in the Australian Open. I respect the Court’s ruling and I’ll co-operate with the relevant authorities in relation to my departure from Aus.

“I am uncomfortable that the focus of the past weeks has been on me and I hope that we can all now focus on the game and tournament I love. I would like to wish the players, tournament officials, staff, volunteers and fans all the best for the tournament.

“Finally, I would like to thank my family, friends, team, supporters, fans and my fellow Serbians for your continued support. You have all been a great source of strength to me.”

On Tuesday evening, two days into the tournament, Tennis Australia finally addressed the situation.

In a statement, the TA board said it “deeply regrets” the events that led the world’s best male tennis player to travel to Australia under the impression he had a medical exemption that meant he did not need to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

“The board and Member Associations commend the Tennis Australia CEO (Tiley) and the entire Tennis Australia team for their hard work and dedication to delivering a spectacular summer of tennis,” the statement read.

The Queenslander progressed to the third round after sweeping aside Italian qualifier Lucia Bronzetti in straight sets on Rod Laver Arena.

Rafael Nadal is also back in action, as is Naomi Osaka and Aussie favourite John Millman.

In case you missed him last night, you can read up about Nick Kyrgios’ antics in his win over Liam Broady here, featuring all the usual tricks including underarm tweeners.

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Tennis stunned by optical illusion

The early leader for shot of the tournament might go to Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta who did the unthinkable when he ran onto the opposite side of the net to play a winner.

The Spaniard’s opponent, Tallon Griekspoor, tried to play an overhead smash that crashed into the net rope, bounced straight up in the air, landed in and then bounced back towards him.

Carreno Busta rushed the net, ran around it and played one of the most unorthodox shots you’ll ever see.

The 19th seed sent the Kia Arena into a frenzy.

Day three order of play

Rod Laver Arena

Paula Badosa (ESP) [8] beat Martina Trevisan (ITA) 6-0 6-3

Ash Barty (AUS) [1] beat Lucia Bronzetti (ITA) 6-1 6-1

Rafael Nadal (ESP) [6] beat Yannick Hanfmann (GER) 6-2 6-3 6-4

From 7pm: Madison Brengle (USA) vs Naomi Osaka (JPN) [13]

Alexander Zverev (GER) [3] vs John Millman (AUS)

Margaret Court Arena

Elina Svitolina (UKR) [15] beat Harmony Tan (FRA) 6-3 5-7 5-1 (retired)

Denis Shapovalov (CAN) [14] beat Soonwoo Kwon (KOR) 7-6 6-7 6-7 7-5 6-2

Barbora Krejcikova (CZE) [4] vs Xiyu Wang (CHN)

From 7pm: Qinwen Zheng (CHN) vs Maria Sakkari (GRE) [5]

Gael Monfils (FRA) [17] vs Alexander Bublik (KAZ)

John Cain Arena

Camila Giorgi (ITA) [30] beat Tereza Martincova (CZE) 6-2 7-6

Madison Keys (USA) beat Jaqueline Cristian (ROU) 6-2 7-5

Matteo Berrettini (ITA) [7] beat Stefan Kozlov (USA) 6-1 4-6 6-4 6-1

Hubert Hurkacz (POL) [10] vs Adrian Mannarino (FRA)

Blockbuster Aussie duo cruise through to 2nd round

Nick Kyrgios and his good mate Thanasi Kokkinakis have advanced through the opening round of the doubles draw by defeating fellow Aussies Alex Bolt and James McCabe, 6-4 6-2.

The combination of Kyrgios and Kokkinakis had a lot of fun in front of a packed Court 3 which reached capacity. Long lines of eager fans were waiting outside the gates for a chance to catch the all-Aussie affair.

Nadal through to third round

Spanish phenom Rafael Nadal has secured a straight sets victory over Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann to book his spot in the top 32.

Nadal needed five match points to get the job done, but regardless, he emerged triumphant with a comfortable 6-2 6-3 6-4 victory.

The 35-year-old will next face either France’s Benjamin Bonzi or Russia’s Karen Khachanov on Friday.

‘Heartbreaking’: Star taken off in wheelchair

Harmony Tan was devastated as she retired hurt in the final set of her second round clash against Elina Svitolina.

The 15th seed looked like she was cruising after winning the first set 6-3 but Tan bounced back in the second to level things up.

Sadly, things went very wrong and she had to call it quits at 1-5 in the decider.

Tan was so determined to play on that according to reports, it took the chair umpire to encourage her to retire because her calf injury was so troubling.

“Not sure I’ve ever seen this, but the chair umpire just advised Harmony Tan to retire due to a calf injury,” The Tennis Podcast tweeted.

Barty dispels rumour about her outfit

Ash Barty has put to rest a rumour that her uniform includes a subtle nod to the ruby red slippers worn by Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz because “there’s no place like home”.

Barty has been wearing bright red shoes in both her matches to start the tournament.

“There’s no place like home, you mentioned. It has been mentioned online about the ruby slippers, the red sneakers,” a reporter told Barty in her post-match press conference.

“I haven’t seen that,” Barty replied, smiling.

“No, I mean, red shoes go faster, right? That’s the whole thing behind it.

“I love the outfit I’m in in Fila this year. The red shoes are cool. Not often am I one to wear bright shoes, but no, they’re pretty cool this year.”

‘Insane’: Barty’s latest bloodbath

Ash Barty made light work of Lucia Bronzetti, dismantling the Italian in straight sets for a comprehensive 6-1 6-1 victory.

The Aussie won her opening match 6-0 6-1 against Lesia Tsurenko, meaning she has only dropped three games across the opening two rounds at Melbourne Park this year.

Barty started impressively against Bronzetti, holding twice and breaking at the first opportunity to go up 3-0 in the first set.

The two-time major winner was using her trademark slice to her advantage early on — a stroke labelled by tennis commentator Jose Morgado as “insane” on Twitter.

Pretty soon it was 5-0 as Barty showed her opponent no mercy before Bronzetti finally got on the board. But that was the only joy for the underdog in the set as she went down 1-6 in just 26 minutes.

It was a case of more of the same in the second set, though Bronzetti was putting up some slightly stiffer resistance. But the fight was futile as Barty secured a double break to surge towards 4-1 before finishing the job.

Awkward Barty mention in post-match interview

Spanish rising star Paula Badosa delivered one of the more awkward post match interview responses when she revealed just how much she relished beating Australian golden girl, Ash Barty.

Badosa, ranked 71 in the world at the time, stunned Barty at the WTA quarterfinals last April with a 6-4 6-3 win. It was a day most Aussies would happily forget.

Now ranked No. 6 in the world, Badosa cruised through her second round match against Italy’s Martina Trevison on Tuesday, winning 6-0 6-3 in just over an hour.

Speaking after the match, she said it was the Barty win that propelled her into the upper echelon of women’s tennis.

“I’m going to say right now it was after winning against Ash Barty,” Badosa said.

“She is the best player in the world, the number says it. She is an amazing player and beating her was amazing.

“After that moment I thought anything was possible and I could win against any player.”

There were some chuckles mixed with groans in the crowd, upon being reminded of the result.

Early results roll in

Eighth seed Paula Badosa cruised into the third round with a clinical 6-0 6-3 win over Martina Trevisan and Victoria Azarenka beat Jil Teichmann in straight sets.

Camila Giorgi also defeated Tereza Martincova 6-2 7-6 and will face Ash Barty in the third round if the Aussie wins today.

Marta Kostyuk upset 32nd seed Sara Sorribes Tormo 7-6 6-3.

Murray clips Channel 9

After a gruelling five-set win over Nikoloz Basilashvili, all Andy Murray wanted to do was sit down and watch one the emerging superstars of tennis — even if it was getting late.

British teenager Emma Raducanu — who made her mark by winning last year’s US Open — faced Sloane Stephens on Margaret Court Arena but Murray wasn’t sure he’d be able to watch the young gun.

“Come on Channel 9 let’s get raducanu stephens on one of the channels instead of 2x Rod Laver!” he tweeted late on Tuesday night.

The broadcaster listened to the two-time Wimbledon champion, replying by saying: “FTFY Andy. Raducanu vs Stephens is now available to watch on @9Gem.”

Raducanu won her match in three sets to advance to the second round.

Classy gesture in Kyrgios match

A raucous crowd was cheering for Nick Kyrgios on Tuesday night but Liam Broady will have won plenty of fans with a classy gesture on John Cain Arena.

The Brit took to the court with rainbow laces in support of the LGBTQI+ community.

Asked about his fashion choice after the match, Broady said: “I know obviously within men’s tennis — is it a taboo? I don’t think it’s really a taboo, but I’ve seen questions before about why there aren’t any openly gay men on the tour, and I just wanted to kind of voice my support in that general area.

“And the LGBTQI community, I mean, a lot of those guys have given me a lot of support throughout my career and have been there since day one, so I kind of wanted to give a thank you in my own sort of way.”

Day three preview

Rafael Nadal steps up his march towards a record 21st Grand Slam title at the Australian Open on Wednesday, with Ash Barty and Naomi Osaka also taking centre stage.

Defending champion Osaka and Wimbledon winner Barty will be one victory away from colliding if both come through their second-round encounters unscathed.

Japan’s Osaka, who has won two Australian and two US Opens, faces American Madison Brengle in the night session on Rod Laver Arena.

Red-hot Barty, the top seed and home hope, comes up against Italian qualifier Lucia Bronzetti in an early afternoon encounter.

Nadal, who recently won his first tournament after five months out battling a foot injury, was highly impressive in racing past American Marcos Giron in straight sets on Monday to open his campaign.

“I am super-happy about all the work that we have done to try to be back. We are here enjoying the tennis,” said the Spanish sixth seed, who will face German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann after Barty’s match ends.

Nadal’s half of the draw was made easier when the unvaccinated nine-time champion Novak Djokovic was thrown out of Australia.

– In the mood –

The ultra-consistent Barty, who won a warm-up tournament in Adelaide, hasn’t dropped her serve for 41 straight games over four matches and destroyed Lesia Tsurenko 6-0, 6-1 on Monday.

“I think obviously the last five or six matches I felt like I found a really good rhythm on my service games,” said the Australian, who is chasing a first home Grand Slam.

Osaka beat American Jennifer Brady in last year’s Melbourne Park final, but then withdrew from the French Open and Wimbledon over mental health issues. She took an indefinite break after the US Open in September.

But the 24-year-old said she felt much more positive after her first-round win over Colombia’s Camila Osorio.

“I just want to have fun, first of all,” said the 13th seed. “I can’t expect myself to win every match, but I do expect myself to have fun and challenge myself.” Men’s third seed Alexander Zverev is looking to follow his Olympic gold in Tokyo last year with a first Grand Slam title.

He safely came through a tricky late-night first-round clash against fellow German Daniel Altmaier despite not being at his best.

“It’s the first round of hopefully a very long Grand Slam, you are not always going to play your best tennis,” said the 24-year-old.

He will play Australia’s John Millman, who will garner plenty of partisan vocal support in another late-night encounter on Rod Laver Arena.

French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova was ruthless in her dismissal of German veteran Andrea Petkovic 6-2, 6-0 in the first round, and a repeat of that form should see her past China’s world number 100 Wang Xiyu.

Spanish eighth seed Paula Badosa, who beat Krejcikova in a three-set thriller to win the Sydney warm-up tournament, opens proceedings at 11:00am (0000 GMT) against Italian qualifier Martina Trevisan.

On the men’s side, seventh seed Matteo Berrettini, who endured frequent toilet trips in a gutsy four-set win on Monday, will hope he doesn’t need to reach for the Imodium again when he comes up against American qualifier Stefan Kozlov.

AFP

Novak Djokovic’s controversial visa cancellation has sparked outrage on both sides of the debate at various points over the past fortnight but Lee decided it’s apparently not too soon to laugh about the whole affair.

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The Aussie funnyman — one half of the popular radio, TV and podcast duo Hamish & Andy — has been a staple of the Australian Open coverage in recent times and has filmed numerous sketches with stars in Melbourne, challenging them to games of “Guess Who”, or as the clips make clear, “Guess Whom” for legal reasons.

Lee played a game with Djokovic that was aired during the 2020 Australian Open and he decided to use a little creative licence to repurpose that old video for today’s audience.

Lee posted a heavily edited clip — we repeat, heavily edited — on his Twitter account to poke fun at the deported Serbian superstar.

This video is not real — it is footage that was filmed years ago — but Lee jumped back in front of the camera and used the editing booth to produce his comedic skit.

While you generally ask several different questions, Lee made it appear as though he only needed to ask one: “Does that person over there, have a legitimate visa to be able to stay in the country?”

After a long pause, a ponderous Djokovic replied: “No.”

Lee then knocked everyone out on his board except Djokovic and said: “Am I Novak?”

“It’s another loss for you this week,” Lee continued. “You have stayed pretty calm about it though.”

Djokovic then flips the table and says: “What do you mean calm? This is crazy”.

The original video back in 2020 saw Djokovic pick up a card with Aussie veteran Sam Stosur and accidentally take aim at her style. Lee picked up the man across the table from him.

Lee, who traditionally asks uncommon questions for Guess Whom, asked: “Am I stylish enough for a high-end clothing brand to want to use me as the face of it?”

After five painful seconds where the anguish is written all over Djokovic’s face, the world No. 1 eventually responds with a flat “No”.

While there were several questions back and forth, the question that saw Djokovic snap — although clearly for comic effect — was: “Is this person very calm?”

Lee replied: “I would say … calm.”

After knocking a few out, Djokovic said: “Novak Djokovic out for sure.”

It left just Roger Federer, which was clearly the wrong person.

A sheepish Lee said “I though you were pretty calm” and he threw the table, with Novak adding: “What do you mean calm? This is crazy.”

Djokovic departed Australia on Sunday evening after the 20-time grand slam champion’s legal team failed to overturn Immigration Minister Alex Hawke’s decision to cancel his visa.

The case was heard by a full bench of the Federal Court of Australia on Sunday afternoon which ruled unanimously to deport the Serbian star, ending an 11-day ordeal.

The 34-year-old also faces the prospect of being banned from entering the country for three years.

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Appearing on ESPN ahead of the Melbourne-based grand slam tournament, McEnroe took aim at the Australian government for how it handled the “sad” situation.

“(It’s an) absolute joke what’s gone on the last 12 days,” he said. “It’s sad the way it ended. I watched it play out live.

“It’s total BS. If he decides not to have a vaccine and the Australian authorities say, ‘You cannot go down there, unless you’re vaccinated,’ end of story, it’s black or white.

“He decides whether or not he wants to do it. He’s got very strong beliefs he’s entitled to those beliefs.

“The guy’s won it nine times. I’ve got to hand it to him. I’ve got seven majors, he’s got 20, the reason he’s got a lot more than me is because he’s willing to go risk that, to go down there.

“You’re talking about a guy that was potentially about to break Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s record and that he was willing to go to these lengths, ‘I don’t want to get vaccinated but I’m going to do whatever it takes’.”

McEnroe then appeared to suggest that journalists fabricated reports that Djokovic conducted an in-person interview with French newspaper L’Equipe despite knowing he had tested positive to Covid-19, despite the Serbian confirming those reports last week.

“Here’s the other part that’s weird,” McEnroe said. “Djokovic apparently … and listen, I’m a fan of Novak and I have a lot of respect for him … but supposedly he knew he had it, and then he flew back and went to Serbia and that’s not what you’re allowed to do.

“And then he met with some journalist, allegedly … that he spoke to a journalist, in Serbia I believe, I don’t know the exact details of the dates … is that proven, is that absolute fact? “You know journalists have been known to make …”

The 62-year-old was promptly interrupted and corrected.

“I see,” he said. “Well that hurts, that hurts.”

McEnroe also questioned why Djokovic, who believed he had been granted a medical exemption to taking the Covid-19 vaccine, was permitted to travel to Australia.

“Ok, let’s assume that he wasn’t going to play but then suddenly he got Covid and then he got an exemption and he can play. You can’t tell him after he flies all the way there,” he said.

“The idea that the government and these people weren’t in cahoots with each other. I’m sorry. I don’t buy into that one. They all knew what was going on.

“That’s why people are up in arms, but nonetheless they granted this exemption. You can’t do this after that, it’s a joke.”

On Sunday, Djokovic released a statement saying he was “extremely disappointed” by the Federal Court’s ruling that upheld the government’s right to rip up his visa over fears he is stoking anti-vaccine sentiment.

“I am extremely disappointed with the ruling to dismiss my application for judicial review of the decision to cancel my visa, which means I cannot stay in Australia and participate in the Australian Open,” he wrote.

“I respect the Court’s ruling and I’ll co-operate with the relevant authorities in relation to my departure from Aus.

“I am uncomfortable that the focus of the past weeks has been on me and I hope that we can all now focus on the game and tournament I love. I would like to wish the players, tournament officials, staff, volunteers and fans all the best for the tournament.

“Finally, I would like to thank my family, friends, team, supporters, fans and my fellow Serbians for your continued support. You have all been a great source of strength to me.”

Meanwhile, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic lashed out at Australian authorities hours after the Federal Court paved the way for Djokovic’s deportation.

“They think that they have by this, this mistreatment of ten days humiliated Djokovic, but they have humiliated themselves,” Vucic told a state media outlet. “Djokovic can return to his country with his head held high.”

Djokovic was scheduled to get his Australian Open campaign underway at Rod Laver Arena on Monday evening, but world No. 150 Salvatore Caruso has replaced him in the men’s singles draw.