Wild moment a pro-refugee protester LEAPS three metres onto the Australian Open court during the men’s final – before swiftly being seized by security
A protester holding an ‘abolish refugee detention’ sign has dramatically thrown themselves three metres onto the Australian Open court during the men’s final.
Spaniard Rafael Nadal and Russian world No.2 Daniil Medvedev’s blockbuster match was brought to a halt on Sunday night after a demonstrator jumped onto Rod Laver Arena from the grandstand.
Outraged fans could be heard booing as the protester stumbled onto the court clutching a fabric banner before being quickly seized by several guards.
The crowd erupted in cheers authorities dragged the trespasser off the arena, with one audience member screaming ‘get off the stage!’.
A protester has dramatically thrown himself three metres onto the Australian Open court during the men’s final
Nadal’s fight for a 21st grand slam title is off to a rocky start after Medvedev took out the first round 6-2 and the second after a tie break.
The Spaniard bidding for the record number of majors that most thought world No. 1 Novak Djokovic would be eyeing off before his dramatic deportation from Australia on the eve of the season’s first slam.
After two desperate court battles and a fortnight-long saga that drew worldwide attention, Djokovic’s departure for not having the necessary visa to enter the country opened the door for Nadal.
After playing just two matches between June and January because of a crippling foot injury aggravated during his devastating French Open finals loss last year to Djokovic, not even the Spaniard dreamed of being in this position.
‘We can create histories but the real truth is that two months ago we didn’t know if we will be able to be back on tour at all,’ Nadal said after his epic five-set quarter-final victory over Denis Shapovalov on Wednesday.
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