The answer’s ‘no’: Novak Djokovic’s list of quarantine demands revealed

Australia has been notoriously strict with quarantine rules since the coronavirus pandemic hit its shores, and now Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has doubled down, refusing to bend the rules for anyone – even tennis star Novak Djokovic.

The Serbian player is just one of 1,200 players, staff and officials who flew to Australia on chartered flights to complete a shortened stint of quarantine prior the Australian Open.

But after nine people on these flights, including one unnamed player, tested positive to Covid-19, at least 72 players who travelled on the same planes as the infected people have been forced to self-isolate for the full 14 days and are not allowed to leave their hotel rooms to train before the tournament begins on February 8. Some players have argued that if they’d been aware of the threat of longer quarantine, they would have considered not coming to Australia at all.

Kazakhstan player Yulia Putintseva, who ranks No.28 in the world, tweeted: “What I don’t understand is that, why no one ever told us, if one person on board is positive the whole plane need to be isolated. I would think twice before coming here.”

Following outrage from some players, Djokovic, 33, took a stand demanding that Tennis Australia provide players who are stuck in quarantine better conditions. According to reports from Spanish website Punto de Break, Djokovic addressed a letter to Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley and requested that players be released from hard lockdown and moved to private houses with tennis courts so they could prepare for the event.

His other demands included:

• Fitness and training material in all rooms
• Decent food for all players, after a number of players complained about their food on day one of quarantine
• Fewer overall days of isolation for players in hotel quarantine, while also carrying out more Covid tests
• Permission for players to visit their coach or physical trainer as long as both have passed Covid tests
• Permission for players and coaches to be on the same floor of the hotel if they pass Covid tests

However, the demands were met with immediate refusal from Andrews who said on Monday that rules were based on public health advice and wouldn’t change for anyone.

“People are free to provide lists of demands, but the answer is no,” he said. “I know that there’s been a bit of chatter from a number of players about the rules. Well, the rules apply to them as they apply to everybody else, and they were all briefed on that before they came, and that was the condition on which they came.