Current world No. 6 Rafael Nadal said he felt sorry that Novak Djokovic was denied entry into Australia, but added that the he knew for months he could potentially face problems if he arrived without being vaccinated. Video / SNTV via AP
Czech tennis player Renata Voracova has slammed her accommodation after detained in the same Melbourne hotel as Novak Djokovic, comparing her stay with being in prison.
Accordingto multiple reports, Czech veteran Renata Voracova was seized by Australian Border Force (ABF) officials on Thursday and told she would be deported.
Voracova was said to have entered Australia last month with a medical exemption from having to have been vaccinated after she said she was deemed to have recovered from Covid-19.
The 38-year-old had already played in an Australian Open warm-up tournament in Melbourne. However, unlike Djokovic, Voracova had already been let into the country and had already played in an Australian Open warm-up event in Melbourne.
Speaking to Czech publications DNES and Sport, Voracova detailed the "unpleasant" conditions she was being kept in.
"The men in plain clothes with the police came for me and deported me to the local detention hotel. You don't expect anything like this to meet you here," Voracova said.
"I'm in a room and I can't go anywhere. My window is shut tight; I can't open it five centimetres.
"And there are guards everywhere, even under the window, which is quite funny. Maybe they thought I would jump and run away.
"They bring me food and there's a guard in the corridor. You have to report, everything is rationed. I feel a bit like in prison."
The immigration detention hotel where Renata Voracova is believed to be staying in Melbourne. Photo / AP
While the 38-year-old was aware she probably ended up in the situation because of the attention paid to men's world No.1 Djokovic, she did not have any hard feeling towards him. Instead, she questioned the system that allowed her to enter into the country in the first place and just how easily that decision was reversed a week later.
"I don't understand why they would come to me after a week and say, look, the rules that applied do not apply anymore," Voracova said.
"I would like them to let him play. We are athletes, we have come here to play tennis and not to deal with disputes behind the scenes."
