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Australian court rejects Novak Djokovic's visa appeal
Australia's Federal Court has ruled against Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic's appeal against a deportation order.
Sydney: Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic is set to be deported from Australia after country's Federal Court rejected an appeal against the cancellation of his visa.
The three-judge panel of the Federal Court ruled unanimously against the tennis World No.1 on Sunday evening, after hearing his case in an extraordinary out-of-hours sitting earlier in the day.
Federal Court upheld a decision made on Friday by the immigration minister to cancel the 34-year-old Serb's visa on public interest grounds. Federal Court Chief Justice James Allsop, announced the court's decision after deliberating with two fellow judges.
It was decided that Djokovic's amended application be dismissed with costs.
Following the deportation orders, Djokovic will not compete in the Australian Open which is due to start on Monday.
Djokovic had been seeking to overturn Immigration Minister Alex Hawke's decision to cancel his visa for a second time, due to his vaccination status.
Djokovic spent Saturday night in an immigration detention hotel in Melbourne, but was allowed to leave on Sunday to meet with his legal team, under the watch of immigration officials.