Abroad briefly, and Serbian Sports and Youth Minister Vanja Udovicic said that Novak Djokovic had been treated unfairly and inhumanely by Australian authorities and that his country was already considering the next diplomatic steps he could take after the end of the legal challenge of the world No. 1.

“I’m sorry that Novak as a champion has to go through everything [this]he told Serbian news agency Tanjug.

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“From the moment he entered the country, all the inconsistencies came to light and – I must say – the inhuman treatment of the best sportsman in the world is what worries us all and makes the parameters which should be the same for everyone absurd.

“It’s not about sports anymore, it’s about the encroachment on their freedom and how every citizen of this planet should be treated.”

Mr Udovicic said it was “unthinkable” that, in a democracy and a country with a free judicial system, “a minister as an individual could overrule a court decision”.

He added that the highest levels of the Serbian government and sports authorities are in constant contact with Djokovic, united in the desire to ensure that the tennis player is treated fairly and given a fair hearing in the face of “political pressure , sporting and psychological”.

Asked about Serbia’s reaction should the Federal Court of Australia rule against Djokovic, Udovicic said the following:

We will have to sit down and think seriously about the consequences. We have already had a large number of meetings on this subject. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has taken a series of measures. They are procedural [and] legal measures taken within the framework of foreign diplomacy. I am deeply convinced that law and justice will be on the side of Novak, his family and on the side of Serbia and that there will be no need for that.