Calls for Australia to be STRIPPED of the Australian Open for the way it ...

There are growing calls for Australia to be stripped of the Australian Open for the way it treated Novak Djokovic, as the nation's authorities go on 'red alert' over fears of clashes in the stands at the grand slam.   

US star Tennys Sandgren and several tennis fans have called for Australia to be stripped of the tournament - as Djokovic was finally released from immigration detention following a court ruling on Monday. 

Tennis authorities in Melbourne now fear a tinderbox situation at the tournament and are reviewing security arrangements should Djokovic be able to play next week.    

Scuffles broke out between police and Serbian fans yesterday in the city’s business district, with protesters pepper-sprayed, after a suggestion that he was to be put back in detention despite a court freeing him to play.

With Djokovic the focus of rowdy supporters who include anti-vaxxers, the uniformed presence will be beefed up when the event begins on Monday. 

But Djokovic's chances of playing in the Australian Open still hang in the balance tonight as the country's immigration minister considers using his personal powers to re-cancel the anti-vaxxer's visa - despite a judge freeing him from detention this morning. 

Judge Anthony Kelly ruled the government acted 'unreasonably' when it tore up Djokovic's visa at the border last week and then tried to deport him for violating Covid vaccine rules.

The tennis star celebrated his reprieve by posting a picture of himself getting back onto the courts with a midnight training session in Melbourne on Twitter  - alongside a message thanking the judge.

'I’m pleased and grateful that the Judge overturned my visa cancellation. Despite all that has happened, I want to stay and try to compete,' Djokovic wrote alongside an image of himself on court with his team.

'I remain focused on that. I flew here to play at one of the most important events we have in front of the amazing fans. For now I cannot say more but thank you  all for standing with me and encouraging me to stay strong.'

Judge Anthony Kelly ruled border agents had not given Djokovic enough time to put together a defence when at 4am they demanded more documents to support his visa and allowed him just 20 minutes to produce them - as revealed by a transcript of the nearly eight-hour long interview.

Kelly's ruling freed Djokovic from migrant detention where he has been languishing for the last six days in a 'torture chamber' hotel alongside refugees, but does not spell an end to the drama as he still faces being kicked out of the country by immigration minister Alex Hawke who has the power to rip up individual visas.

Mr Hawke declined to use those powers on Monday night but insisted he is still actively considering the move, leaving a Sword of Damocles hanging over Djokovic's head even as he prepares to compete at the Open in a bid to become the most-decorated men's singles player of all time.

Tennis fans are now calling for Australia to be stripped of its long-standing grand slam status unless Djokovic is allowed to play.

'Japan is way better at this than Australia. Cancel the Australian Open and give it too Japan. Australia is too backward to hold a global sports event,' one Canadian tweeted. 

US celebrity trainer Justin Allen added: 'If the Australian government exercise executive powers and decide to deport Novak Djokovic anyway- despite its own court ruling today- the Australian Open should be stripped of its grand slam status and become a non-ranking event.' 

Australian Open quarter finalist Tennys Sandgren first sparked the calls when Djokovic's visa was originall cancelled last Thursday.

'Just to be crystal clear here 2 separate medical boards approved his exemption And politicians are stopping it, Australia doesn’t deserve to host a grand slam,' he tweeted.

Mr Hawke's refusal to rule out using his powers to cancel Djokovic's visa has sparked controversy among politicians in Australia, with politician and former tennis star John Alexander saying that the Open will be 'diminished' if the Serbian is not able to play.      

Mr Alexander leapt to the defence of Djokovic and argued the nine-time Australian Open champion complied with the health entry requirements and didn't appear to be an unreasonable health risk to Australia.

The Liberal MP and former world No. 8 said retaining the Australian Open as a grand slam was in the nation's interest before taking a swipe at Mr Hawke.   

He said Mr Hawke's discretionary powers to deport is meant for criminals and contagious people, not 'political problems'.

'It would appear Covid-negative Novak has complied with all health entry requirements, the judge asking: “What more could this man have done?,' Mr Alexander wrote.

'Based on this, Novak does not seem to present an unreasonable health risk to Australia.

'So what would be the ‘public interest’ the Minister could potentially use to exercise his personal powers to deport our defending Australian Open tennis champion?

'Retaining the Australian Open as a grand slam event, I would argue is in our national interest.

'The minister’s ‘personal powers to cancel visas’ are designed to prevent criminals otherwise walking our streets, or to prevent a contagious person otherwise walking our streets; they’re not designed to assist in dealing with a potential political problem of the day.'

Mr Alexander doubled down on his comments on Tuesday morning, telling ABC Radio breakfast host Hamish MacDonald it would be a mistake to deport Djokovic.

'There seems no reason to do so. The judge has been abundantly clear in his finding and his comments around the findings,' he said.

'It was a pretty emphatic decision.' 

While Mr Alexander doesn't believe Australia will lose its grand slam if Djokovic is deported, he warned the event will be 'diminished.'

'If the Australian Open is making conditions that people seem to meet and aren't allowed to come, that would not help our status,' Mr Alexander said.

'We have previously been the poor cousin of the four events but with the establishment of Melbourne Park, it's significantly the best venue of the grand slams.'

'We've got a lot going for us but we need to tread carefully and we need to be showing that people will be allowed in the country if they meet the criteria.' 

The controversy began on Wednesday when Djokovic arrived in Australia to compete in the Open holding what he thought was a valid medical exemption to vaccination rules, stating that he had been infected with Covid last month and recovered. 

But border guards rejected the documents and tore up the visa, with Djokovic thrown into detention while he waited for his appeal to come before the courts.

That hearing took place today, with Judge Kelly quashing the decision to revoke his visa after ruling that the medical exemption was valid and the tennis star had done everything in his power to prove he was not a health risk.  

'What more could this man have done?' he asked a virtual hearing.

As part of the hearing, a transcript between Djokovic and border guards was released that laid bare the star's confusion as he was told that his visa was being cancelled unless he could come up with more documents to support it - in the early hours of the morning and without being allowed to use his phone.

'I am really failing to understand what else do you want me to provide to you. I have provided all the documents that Tennis Australia and Victorian government has asked me to do in the last three/four weeks, this is what we have been doing,' Djokovic said.

'I applied [for a medical exemption], they approved, I just really don’t know what else do you want me to say. I arrived here because of these documents otherwise I wouldn’t have been allowed to come in. I just really don’t understand what is the reason you don’t allow me to enter your country.'

After being told he has 20 minutes to come up with a reason why the visa shouldn't be cancelled, Djokovic adds: 'So you’re giving me legally 20 minutes to try to provide additional information that I don’t have? At 4 o clock in the morning? 

'I mean you kind of put me in a very awkward position where at 4 in the morning I can’t call director of Tennis Australia, I can’t engage with anybody from the Victorian state government through Tennis Australia. I just you put me in a very uncomfortable position. I don’t know what else can I tell you. I mean everything that that they.. that I was asked to do is here.'  

After being told by border guards that having recovered from Covid is not sufficient reason to get a border certificate, Djokovic adds: 'The federal government said okay, fine, access granted, travel declaration, QR code, you are free to go.

'Otherwise I wouldn’t be flying here. There’s absolutely no way I would put myself in a position to come and sit here with you... I made it all the way to Australia because you know they all made it very clear and certain to me that I have all the documentation that I possibly can provide to you.'

Djokovic's lawyer presented the same line of argument in court, saying he had received assurances that a recent positive Covid-19 test qualified him for the medical exception from the country's requirement for all visitors to be double vaccinated. 

The Australian government, however, had argued that non-citizens had no right of guaranteed entry to Australia and stressed that even if the Serbian won the court action, it reserved the right to detain him again and remove him from the country.  

Earlier in the day Djokovic was removed from detention to be with his lawyers during the hearing, and Judge Anthony Kelly expressed agitation over the rejection of Djokovic's medical exemption.

Djokovic's lawyers presented their arguments to the court, but government lawyer Mr Tran only spoke for half an hour before a lengthy adjournment.

It appears the government used the adjournment to withdraw its case, before agreeing with Djokovic's legal team on the wording of the judge's subsequent order. 

The minutes note Djokovic was not given adequate time to respond to the notification to cancel his visa.

Earlier, the court published an order made yesterday that Djokovic be taken from the Park Hotel - where he had been held since Thursday - and brought to 'a premises as specified by the applicant's solicitors' during the hearing.

The hearing was delayed by technical issues with the court's video link, but Djokovic's lawyers argued their case to Judge Kelly, who asked the court 'What more could this man have done?' and said he was 'agitated' about the issue of Djokovic's medical exemption.

'Here, a professor and an eminently qualified physician have produced and provided to the applicant a medical exemption,' Judge Kelly said.

'Further to that, that medical exemption and the basis on which it was given was separately given by a further independent expert specialist panel established by the Victorian state government and that document was in the hands of the delegate.'

Djokovic's lawyer, Nicholas Wood, has argued the notice of intention to cancel his visa was

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