But neither will the federal government as global headlines about the nine-time Australian Open tennis champion continue to remind the rest of the world this country is not necessarily all that open.

Djokovic could hardly have been surprised by Immigration Minister Alex Hawke's decision to order his deportation on Friday.

After all, the world's No.1 male tennis player had earlier admitted providing incorrect information on a travel declaration form to enter Australia.

The unvaccinated Serbian also apologised, in a statement posted on social media, for making an "error of judgment" by recently participating in a face-to-face interview with an overseas journalist despite having tested positive for COVID-19.

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It followed that Mr Hawke used his power under the Migration Act to cancel Djokovic's visa "on health and good order grounds, on the basis that it was in the public interest to do so".

As Djokovic prepares to challenge that decision in the Federal Court on Sunday, having already had a previous order refusing him entry to Australia overturned, minds will again turn to border policy.

Already, the detention in a Melbourne hotel of one of the world's most prominent sportsmen alongside asylum seekers, some of whom have been locked up for nine years, has drawn attention to Australia's often harsh stance on who comes through the border.

The fact people seeking to flee from danger can be left in limbo for nearly a decade is a black eye for this country when a celebrity is able to obtain emergency court hearings that will eventually determine whether he plays in a tennis tournament.

On Friday night, for instance, the Federal Circuit Court sat beyond 11pm to determine the next steps in Djokovic's matter.

When courts across the country regularly take years to resolve cases and rarely ever list matters outside business hours, those sitting in custody with an uncertain future would surely be shaking their heads at such a scenario.

Views will understandably differ on whether Djokovic should be allowed to take to Rod Laver Arena this year, and that decision will ultimately be made in accordance with Australia's laws.

But what is certain is this saga has only served to again shine a global spotlight on how those same laws enable many without such a public profile to be left languishing indefinitely.

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