Novak Djokovic announced some news ahead of the Australian Open, which begins on January 12th.
djokovic He made the claim in a lengthy interview with GQ published Thursday. He was briefly detained in Melbourne in 2022 and was reportedly “poisoned” by lead and mercury in his food when he was deported on the eve of the Australian Open.
Meanwhile, the 37-year-old had hoped to play in the Australian Open despite not having been vaccinated against the coronavirus, but his visa was canceled and he was ultimately forced to leave the country. .
The former world number one player was detained in a hotel while trying to win a legal battle to stay in the country and compete in the tournament, but it turned out to be no use.
“I had some health problems,” Djokovic told the magazine. “Then I realized in a hotel in Melbourne that I had been fed food that poisoned me,” Djokovic, 37, told the magazine.
“When I returned to Serbia, I made some discoveries. I didn't tell anyone about this publicly, but I realized that I had a very high level of heavy metal music. There was lead, very high levels of lead and mercury.”
In response to a question from the magazine, Djokovic said he believed the food was contaminated, “that's the only way”.
The 37-year-old refused to give details when asked in Melbourne on Friday if there was evidence that his high blood levels of heavy metals were linked to the diet he was given.
However, he did not recant his suspicions of ingesting poison.
“The GQ article came out yesterday. …I did that interview months ago,” said Djokovic, who is preparing for his 25th Grand Slam title and 11th Australian Open title. said. “I appreciate that I won't go into further detail as I want to focus on tennis and why I'm here.
“If you want to see what I said or get more information about it, you can always come back to the article.”
Australia's Department of Home Affairs did not comment on Djokovic's claims, citing “privacy reasons”.
In other Djokovic-related news, the sure-fire Hall of Famer will be working with new coach Andy Murray for the first time since surprisingly hiring him in November, adding: “I'm excited to start the tournament with him.'' I'm excited,” he added.
Murray, who finished his decorated career with three major tournaments, faced Djokovic 36 times, winning 11 of them.
“He knows the evolution of my game, the weaknesses and strengths of my game,” Djokovic told reporters. “He also recently retired as a player, so he knows the game of the biggest players in the world right now, the game of tennis.
Regarding the past controversy over the coronavirus in 2022, Djokovic, who won the title the following year, said he “does not hold any grudge against the Australian people.”
“Over the last few years, many Australians I have met in Australia and other parts of the world have come up to me and apologized to me for the way they were treated, because they were under the influence of their own government at the time. “I was confused,” he said. In an article in GQ. “Then the government changed and I think my visa was reinstated, and I was very grateful for that.
“I actually love being there and I think my results are a testament to the feeling of playing tennis and just being in the country.”
Still, Djokovic said he was in no hurry to meet with the officials who detained him.
“I've never met the people who kicked me out of the country a few years ago. I have no desire to meet them. If I do it someday, that's okay. I can shake their hands and move on. I’m glad I did it.”
