Novak Djokovic said his controversial deportation ahead of last year’s Australian Open proved an unlikely catalyst for success in 2022, allowing him to regroup on the practice court before bouncing back with key titles.

The Serb trained hard in the months after he was deported and while barred from competing in the United States for not being vaccinated against Covid-19.

He later won his seventh Wimbledon crown and capped a year of disruption by winning the ATP Tour Finals for a sixth time in Turin.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia poses for a selfie with fans after the Arena Showdown charity match against Nick Kyrgios of Australia. (Photo: Graham Denholm / Getty Images)

Back at Melbourne Park after his visa ban was lifted by the Australian government, Djokovic said missing events due to his vaccination stance had renewed his determination on the training court.

“Yes, absolutely. I mean, you normally, as a professional tennis player on the highest level, don’t have much time to really have a longer training block,” Djokovic told reporters on Saturday, 14 January.

“The fact that I wasn’t playing for several months at the beginning of last year allowed me to really get together with my team and work on my body, on my strokes, which has later helped me to achieve some great results.”

Djokovic told local broadcaster Nine Network that he felt like “the villain of the world” last year in Melbourne where he was detained at a hotel with asylum-seekers before being deported.

Visit Daily Maverick’s home page for more news, analysis and investigations

He was, however, warmly received by a packed crowd at Rod Laver Arena on Friday night during a practice match against home hero Nick Kyrgios.

Djokovic, who will bid for a record-extending 10th Australian Open crown, said he had no choice but to move on from the events of last year.

“Well, you have to. I mean, in a way, if I do hold the grudges, probably if I’m not able to move on, I wouldn’t be here,” he told reporters. “Also I have to say that the amount of positive experiences I had in Australia overwhelm the negative experience maybe of last year.”

The 35-year-old said he was still cautious about a hamstring strain he picked up in Adelaide and was training lighter than usual to conserve his energy.

There was no holding back on his motivation to grab another Melbourne Park crown, though, and draw level with champion Rafa Nadal in the Grand Slam race with a 22nd major title.

“That’s why I keep on playing professional tennis, competition tennis, because I want to be the best, I want to win the biggest tournaments in the world,” said Djokovic, who opens his tournament against unseeded Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena.

“There is no secret about it. It doesn’t get bigger than this. I like my chances. I always like my chances.”

Jabeur’s Grand Slam ambitions

Ons Jabeur of Tunisia serves during a practice session ahead of the 2023 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on 11 January 2023. (Photo: Graham Denholm / Getty Images)

A quarterfinal berth at the 2020 Australian Open marked Ons Jabeur’s arrival as a Grand Slam force but the Tunisian trailblazer will not be satisfied with a repeat performance at Melbourne Park this year.

After reaching the finals at Wimbledon and the US Open last year, Jabeur is hoping to go one better in Australia and become the first Arab woman to win a Grand Slam title.

“Yeah, I may not be as happy as I was in 2020 reaching the quarterfinal,” the 28-year-old told reporters with a smile. “I’m going to put more pressure on myself because I feel like sometimes you just need that to be one of the top players.

“I want to be number one in the world, not just the number but also the level and the discipline around it. I want to win more titles and get that Grand Slam title, for sure.”

A relatively late bloomer, Jabeur’s recent success has made her a star in the Arab world and seen her sign with Naomi Osaka’s sports management agency Evolve in partnership with Tunisian agent Adel Aref.

It has also meant her own episode on Netflix’s behind-the-scenes tennis series Break Point, in which she says she resisted expectations that she would quit tennis and become a housewife.

“Actually, I skipped to my episode,” she said. “We actually filmed more things. It’s not there. I’m still waiting for the second part because I feel like there are a lot of things we filmed at Wimbledon and the US Open. Hopefully I can see that.”

She said she and her husband-trainer Karim Kamoun each had pictures on their phones of different trophies after setting goals for 2023 — but she was coy about which ones.

“My goal is to not lose any more finals,” she added. Reuters/DM

Australian Open order of play on Monday, 16 January

Rod Laver Arena

• Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic) v 7-Coco Gauff (US)
• Yuan Yue (China) v 6-Maria Sakkari (Greece)
• 1-Rafa Nadal (Spain) v Jack Draper (Britain)

Night session

• 1-Iga Swiatek (Poland) v Jule Niemeier (Germany)
• Marcos Giron (US) v 7-Daniil Medvedev (Russia)

Margaret Court Arena

• 3-Jessica Pegula (US) v Jaqueline Cristian (Romania)
• 10-Hubert Hurkacz (Poland) v Pedro Martinez (Spain)
• Sofia Kenin (US) v 24-Victoria Azarenka (Belarus)
• Night session
• 3-Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece) v Quentin Halys (France)
• 10-Madison Keys (US) v Anna Blinkova (Russia)

John Cain Arena

• Kyle Edmund (Britain) v 15-Jannik Sinner (Italy)
• Alison van Uytvanck (Belgium) v 15-Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic)
• Sebastian Baez (Argentina) v Jason Kubler (Australia)
• Vasek Pospisil (Canada) v 6-Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada)