Novak Djokovic is not the only competitor to have his visa cancelled as the Czech Foreign Ministry joined the growing list demanding answers over the Australian Open's medical exemption bungle.
Doubles specialist Renata Voracova has been confirmed to be at the same Melbourne hotel as the world number one after having her visa cancelled by the Australian Border Force (ABF) on Thursday.
And the ABF has also confirmed that action has been taken against a third person.
"One individual has voluntarily departed Australia ... and the visa of a third individual has been cancelled," the ABF said.
The ABF added that one person had been taken into immigration detention pending deportation, but declined to to give details.
The 38-year-old veteran Voracova, ranked world number 81 in doubles, arrived in Australia last month and has already played in a warm-up event in Melbourne.
The Czech Foreign Ministry has ordered a 'please explain' from Australian officials.
A statement from Prague confirmed Voracova would return home and not challenge the decision, while also suggesting there were more players already in the same predicament.
"We can confirm that Czech tennis player Renata Voracova is in the same detention as Djokovic, together with several other players," the Czech Foreign 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."
Serbia's world No.1 Djokovic spent a third night in a quarantine hotel awaiting the outcome of an appeal against the decision by the ABF to cancel the reigning Australian Open champion's entry visa and deport him.
Czech doubles player Renata Voracova had her visa canceled and was taken to the same hotel where Novak Djokovic is staying. Source: AAP
On Saturday, he broke his silence from his Melbourne hotel after having his visa revoked, posting a message of thanks to his supporters around the world for their backing.
"Thank you to people around the world for your continuous support. I can feel it and it is greatly appreciated," Djokovic posted, while some supporters were still maintaining their vigil outside the government detention hotel in the Melbourne suburb of Carlton.
Djokovic has received calls at his hotel from back home in Serbia from his parents, as well as the country's president, as they've attempted to provide him with some holiday cheer.
A priest from the Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Church in Melbourne asked to visit Djokovic on Friday on what is Orthodox Christmas Day in Serbia but was not allowed because of the lockdown at the hotel.
"Our Christmas is rich in many customs, and it is so important that a priest visits him," the church's dean, Milorad Locard, told the ABC.
"The whole thing around this event is appalling. That he has to spend Christmas in detention ... it is unthinkable."
In Belgrade, there was another major demonstration of support for the national Serbian hero's plight on Friday, with Djokovic's father Srdjan telling the crowd Australian authorities wanted to humiliate his "captive" son.
Diana (L) and Srdjan Djokovic (R) address a rally in support of their son, Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic, in Belgrade, Serbia. Source: AAP
That claim has been dismissed by Australian Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews, who has said "he is free to leave at any time that he chooses."
Hundreds gathered at the Belgrade rally as Srdjan Djokovic declared his son's struggle to play at the Open was a fight "for himself, his people and all freedom-loving nations in the world.
"They hate him because Australian politicians have put pressure on people to hate him because he thinks with his own brain."
While suggesting Australians had themselves been in captivity for two years over strict anti-virus measures, he added: "He (Djokovic) is in prison, not in custody, not in a hotel.
"They took away all his things, took away his wallet, and returned it to him after a few hours," he added, as the crowd responded with chants of "monsters, monsters!".
Djokovic had been granted a medical exemption over Australia's COVID-19 vaccination requirements following a review by two independent panels prior to boarding his flight from the Middle East, but he was denied entry on Wednesday night.
Several hundred people gathered outside Serbian parliament in a show of support for Serbian player Novak Djokovic on Friday, 7 January. Source: AA{
The 34-year-old has since been in the detention hotel while his legal team have launched an appeal seeking to overturn the government decision, with a court agreeing not to deport him until Monday's scheduled hearing.
Champion Djokovic is due to aim at a record-extending 10th singles title when the Australian Open begins on January 17, but has no chance of training for his title defence while awaiting the court hearing in his hotel.
Meanwhile, News Corp Australia has published an information sheet sent from Tennis Australia (TA) to players last month.
The letter outlines the grounds for medical exemptions for vaccinations, including a COVID-19 infection in the last six months that is at odds with the advice TA received from government authorities.
The Victorian Government, who initially granted both Djokovic and Voracova an exemption, said on Friday that TA did not advise them of this development.
But TA responded by saying it completely rejected that players were "knowingly misled", adding that it had used guidance from the health minister's advisory group on immunisation to explain player eligibility under Victoria's laws to the playing group.
