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John McEnroe went on an odd rant defending Novak Djokovic live on air, calling the treatment of the Serbian star an "absolute joke."
McEnroe also called Djokovic "gutsy" for travelling to Australia without being vaccinated against coronavirus, then seemingly falsely accused journalists of fabricating the fact that Djokovic broke coronavirus quarantine rules.
Djokovic was deported from Australia on Sunday after a near two-week battle over his visa, which was revoked for a second time after he was found to have provided false information about his movements on a travel declaration forms when entering the country.
"It's sad the way it ended. I watched it play out live," McEnroe said while speaking Monday on ESPN, adding that the saga was "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," said the American tennis icon.
"He's got very strong beliefs. He's entitled to those beliefs.
"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."
Getty/Glyn Kirk
McEnroe then went on to address Djokovic's failure to isolate after testing positive for COVID-19 in December.
The 34-year-old admitted in an Instagram post earlier this month that he had attended a media event in December just days after contracting the virus because he "felt obliged" to do so.
"And then he met with some journalist, allegedly he spoke to a journalist, in Serbia I believe," said McEnroe. "I don't know the exact details of the dates, but is that proven, is that absolute fact?
"You know, journalists have been known to make..."
McEnroe was then cut off and corrected by his co-host Chris Evert, who pointed out that Djokovic had acknowledged meeting the journalist.
The 62-year-old then went on to criticize the Australian government for its handling of the situation.
"Okay, 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."
—Lukas Flippo (@FlippoLuke) January 17, 2022
Djokovic looks set to be pay the price for his deportation from Australia for a long time to come after it was confirmed that he would be banned from entering the country for three years.
Though Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the Serbian could potentially be allowed entry sooner under the "right circumstances," the ban means that in the worst case scenario, he would be unable to compete in the Australian Open until 2025.
He could also miss out on the French Open for the forseeable future.
On Monday, France's Sports Ministry said the world number one could also be barred from competing in the French Open after the country passed a new vaccine pass law that requires people to have a certificate of vaccination to enter public places such as restaurants, cafes, cinemas, and long-distance trains.
"This will apply to everyone who is a spectator or a professional sportsperson," the ministry said.
