The Czech doubles specialist Renata Voracova has been detained in Melbourne, reportedly at the same hotel as Novak Djokovic, after her visa was revoked by Australian border officials for failing to satisfy entry requirements.
It is understood that Voracova, who partnered Katarzyna Piter in the Melbourne Summer Set earlier this week, entered the country in December after she was granted a medical exemption to compete at the Australian Open.
News of the 38-year-old’s detainment was corroborated by the Czech Foreign Ministry.
“We can confirm that Czech tennis player Renata Voracova is in the same detention as Djokovic, together with several other players,” the ministry said in a statement.
“We submitted through our embassy in Canberra a protest note and are asking for an explanation of the situation. However, Renata Voracova decided to drop out of the tournament due to limited possibilities for training and to leave Australia.”
According to a report for The National by the respected Egyptian journalist Reem Abulleil, Voracova relayed news of her fate to Mayar Sherif, whom she was to partner at the Australian Open, in a text message.
“I don’t know if you heard about [Australian Open] exemption cases,” Voracova allegedly told Sherif. “Unfortunately I’m the one and I’m not allowed to play AO by Australian borders. I’m really sorry, but this just happened overnight and they denied my visa, I could do nothing with it.”
The detainment of Voracova, a doubles semi-finalist at Wimbledon in 2017 alongside Makoto Ninomiya, comes after Karen Andrews, Australia’s home affairs minister, warned that border officials were investigating all players and officials who had entered the country on a vaccine exemption like the one granted to Djokovic.
“We do have the intelligence to indicate there are some individuals here now that have not met the entry requirements and we have to investigate that,” Andrews said in an interview with Australia’s Nine Network.
Craig Tiley, the Australian Open tournament director, previously indicated that a total of 26 players and officials had applied for medical exemptions, of which “a handful” were granted.
Djokovic has mounted a legal appeal against his deportation, which will be heard on Monday. An unnamed official who entered Australia on a medical dispensation has reportedly left the country already.