‘This isn’t tennis’: Wimbledon fans brand Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas’s bad-tempered Court 1 clash ’embarrassing’, with one exclaiming ‘Roger Federer would never act like that’
- Wimbledon fans have branded the bad-tempered Court 1 clash ’embarrassing’
- Nick Kyrgios lost his cool after Stefanos Tsitsipas smashed a ball into the crowd
- The fiery Nick Kyrgios lost the first set but recovered superbly to take the next
- The Australian raged at the umpire for not having disqualified his opponent
- Both players were given code violations and Tsitsipas was docked a point
- Kyrgios eventually won in four sets to reach the fourth round of the tournament
Wimbledon fans have branded Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas’s bad-tempered Court 1 clash ’embarrassing’, with one exclaiming ‘Roger Federer would never act like that’.
The Wimbledon crowd has been split over whether they enjoyed a drama-filled match between two fiery players who picked up three code violations between them.
Australia’s Nick Kyrgios was cautioned for swearing, while Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas breached the rules twice for smashing the ball away into the crowd.
The pair’s Court 1 spectators booed loudly in scenes expected of a football match, and those leaving described the game as everything from ’embarrassing’ to ‘absolutely incredible’.
Wimbledon fans have branded Nick Kyrgios (pictured) and Stefanos Tsitsipas’s bad-tempered Court 1 clash ’embarrassing’
Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (pictured) breached the rules twice for smashing the ball away into the crowd
Retired Asda event coordinators from Birkenhead, Merseyside, Wendy Dewhurst, 69, and Carol Morton, 68, said that they are hearing impaired but the crowd was so loud it even felt ‘booming’ to them.
Ms Dewhurst said she thought Kyrgios was ‘play-acting’ and lying on the ground for minutes after a fall ‘like a football player’.
Ms Morton agreed, adding: ‘It was just a grudge match, and it could have been nasty.
‘I had a message from my daughters when we were there, and they said ‘it’s getting like a football match’ too.
‘It was naughty. This isn’t tennis.
‘Roger Federer would never act like that. It was like Ilie Nastase. The crowd was booing, that never used to happen.’
Tennis coaches and brothers Alex and Will Page, both from Twickenham, said the players’ intense dislike for one another was clear from the side-lines.
‘It was a fiery encounter,’ they said. ‘Kyrgios, he definitely battled, and he came through, clearly.
‘He’s a really aggressive player which I think is really good.’
‘Roger Federer would never act like that’ one spectator said about the sportsmen’s behaviour
When asked what they thought of Tsitsipas striking the ball at spectators, Alex called it ’embarrassing’.
‘The code violation was absolutely necessary,’ he added.
‘You can’t be hitting the ball out of anger, especially at Wimbledon.’
Teacher Pippa Gribben, 51, and her daughter Evie Gribben, 18, both from Clevedon, North Somerset, said they loved the drama.
Mrs Gribben said: ‘It was absolutely incredible — players playing at the top of their game, a bit of tension, a bit of code violation, the crowd love that.
‘I felt Kyrgios really got under Tsitsipas’ skin, which he’s really good at.
‘I was hoping we’d have a fifth set, but it ended brilliantly.’
Miss Gribben said that she enjoyed the game more than she would have being on Centre Court watching grand slam great Rafael Nadal, who was playing at the same time.
The tennis players were involved in one of the most bitter matches to ever grace the hallowed grass of Wimbledon
‘I wanted Kyrgios to win,’ she said. ‘You could tell there was a lot of tension between them from the first set.
‘I wouldn’t trade it for the Nadal match, it was an amazing match.’
Tallulah Belle, 48, a teacher from Hackney in north-east London, said the obvious tension between the players sparked battles among the crowd over who they wanted to win.
She said: ‘I like Kyrgios when he’s playing, not when he’s having a temper tantrum, but my sister-in-law who was beside me was for Tsitsipas, so we were having our own battle, every point.
‘I just find him an exciting player. If you get rid of the ego, he’s really talented.
‘Tsitsipas plays sick tactics and so does Kyrgios, so they were well matched today.
‘No-one wants a straightforward match, drama makes it exciting.
The Australian demanded the No 4 seed be disqualified for smashing a ball into the crowd and the Greek admitted deliberately trying to hit his ‘evil’ opponent
‘I think Kyrgios plays to the cameras.
‘If there’s no drama then I don’t think he can pull out his best tennis. It fires him up to have drama.’
Ms Belle added that she thought the amount of booing was ‘unnecessary’.
The tennis players were involved in one of the most bitter matches to ever grace the hallowed grass of Wimbledon, after the Australian demanded the No 4 seed be disqualified for smashing a ball into the crowd and the Greek admitted deliberately trying to hit his ‘evil’ opponent.
In a heated and acrimonious third-round clash on Court One, Kyrgios and Tsitsipas received warnings from the umpire and regularly aired their frustration — both at officials and each other — before the animosity spilled over into the post-match press conference.
Nick Kyrgios raged at the umpire after he refused to default his opponent Stefanos Tsitsipas
Stefanos Tsitsipas had tried to keep his cool throughout but lost it at the end of the second and subsequently lost the third set
Tsitsipas did not hold back in his opinion of Kyrgios, slamming the world No 40 as a ‘bully’ who had an ‘evil’ side to him.
‘It’s constant bullying,’ the Greek said. ‘He was probably a bully at school. I don’t like bullies. He has a very evil side to him.’
Kyrgios had said he ‘loved’ Tsitsipas and had ‘huge respect’ for him in his on-court interview after his 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 win but hit back at his opponent in response to the bullying comment.
‘I’m not sure how I bullied him. He was the one that was hitting balls at me,’ he said. ‘He was the one who hit a spectator. Apart from going back and forth with the umpire, I did nothing disrespectful towards him.
‘The circus was all him today. He’s got some serious issues. I’m liked in the locker room, he is not.’
The two did shake hands at the net after the match but it was a cursory one at best, with Tsitsipas quickly heading off court.
A foul-mouthed Kyrgios had labelled the umpire a ‘disgrace’ after he refused to default Tsitsipas, who hit a backhand into the stands which narrowly missed a female spectator after losing the second set.
‘Are you dumb?’ Kyrgios said. ‘That’s a default, bro.’
When the umpire declined to bend to his requests, Kyrgios — who has proven to be his usual controversial self during the first week of Wimbledon after a number of high-profile incidents including rows with umpires and crowd members — briefly refused to play as he continued to demand Tsitsipas be thrown out of the tournament.
‘Is that a default or what? He just hit the ball at the f****** crowd,’ said Kyrgios. ‘Are you dumb? So you can hit a ball at the crowd, hit someone and not get defaulted?
‘You’re a disgrace. You change the rules whenever you want.
‘Give me all the supervisors. I’m not playing until we get to the bottom of it.’
Some of his antics clearly frustrated Stefanos Tsitsipas who became dragged into the saga
The umpire appeared to explain to Kyrgios, who himself has hit a crowd member with a rogue ball during his career, that he could not default Tsitsipas because the ball did not actually hit anyone.
The No 4 seed received a code violation warning for his behaviour before he later received another code violation and had a point deducted when he once again hit the ball away in frustration — which he later admitted he was aiming at Kyrgios.
After Kyrgios brought out another underarm serve during the third set, the Greek clearly grew even more infuriated and hit the ball away just feet below the first row of spectators behind the baseline.
The umpire called Kyrgios and Tsitsipas over and spoke to them to try and settle proceedings as the match threatened to descend into a farce, with both players feeling as though the world was against them.
The pair shared a cursory handshake at the net after the end of a tense and acrimonious match
Tsitsipas apologised for losing control but said it was frustrating that the umpires did not come down harder on the Australian.
‘I wish we could all come together and put a rule in place. I don’t know. Something about talking. Why would you be talking while you’re playing? It makes no sense,’ he said.
‘Every single point that I played today I feel like there was something going on on the other side of the net.
‘That’s his way of manipulating the opponent and making you feel distracted, in a way. There is no other player that does this. There is no other player that is so upset and frustrated all the time with something.
‘I really hope all us players can come up with something and make this a cleaner version of our sport, have this kind of behaviour not accepted, not allowed, not tolerated.’
Tsitsipas admitted he had tried to hit Kyrgios with a smash in the third set.
‘I was aiming for the body of my opponent but I missed by a lot, by a lot,’ he said. ‘I’m not used to play this way. But I cannot just sit there, act like a robot and act like someone that is completely cold and ignorant.
Tsitsipas became dragged into the saga with the umpire and his opponent and his tennis suffered as a result
‘Because you’re out there doing your job, and you have noise coming from the other side of the court for no absolute reason.’
Former players Pat Cash and John Lloyd, who were commentating on the match for the BBC, believed Kyrgios was lucky to avoid being defaulted for his antics.
After Kyrgios had sealed victory, Cash — who was hardly well behaved during his own playing days — said his fellow Aussie ‘should not have even been on the court’.
Lloyd was also angry with Kyrgios’ behaviour and questioned the spirit in which he had played the match.
The Australian was fined just over £8,000 for the spitting incident during his first round match with Paul Jubb on Tuesday. Kyrgios accused the supporter in whose direction he spat at of being disrespectful to him during his narrow win in five sets.
Kyrgios had earlier become furious with the umpire in his meeting with Tsitsipas after one of his shots was called out at a crucial stage in the first set.
Tsitsipas grew more and more frustrated as Kyrgios claimed back-to-back sets on Court One
‘It’s 5-5 all bro, it’s 5-5 all bro. So get a new one, get a new umpire,’ he ranted.
‘Bro, you’re supposed to make the right call, you don’t get credit unless you make the right call. You just say sorry and it’s all good? It’s f***ing… why don’t you just get a new referee? He’s got one line to call bro.’
Tsitsipas had tried to keep his cool while Kyrgios raged throughout the first set but it all came to a boil at the end of the second when he hit the ball away. Clearly, the hostility and frustration was still running deep within Tsitsipas as he subsequently dropped the third set.
In the fourth, having lost on Tsitsipas’ serve to go down 3-2 in the set, Kyrgios turned his frustration to his team at the other end of the court.
Kyrgios in conversation with an official demanding that Tsitsipas be defaulted
He demanded to know why they hadn’t ‘changed anything’ from the first set after Tsitsipas saw out his service game with consummate ease.
The fourth set went the distance with Kyrgios eventually prevailing 9-7 in a tie-break to ensure he would advance to the fourth round.
The match is likely to be the subject of much debate in the coming days, with pundits and other players alike likely to have a lot to say about the behaviour of the Australian in particular.
It was perhaps not a surprise to see the match play out the way it did. Kyrgios’ antics are well-known but Tsitsipas has also had his share of controversy.
The Greek infamously launched an epic tantrum at the ATP Cup in 2020 when he lost to Kyrgios, hitting his coach and narrowly missing his own father with wayward balls — and getting a lecture from his mother for his behaviour.
The duo have enjoyed a love-hate relationship in recent years, with social media clashes coming after they had played doubles together in 2019.
Demanding a BEER on court, mimicking a sex act, trying to hit Rafael Nadal and partying ahead of a Wimbledon exit… Nick Kyrgios’ most outrageous moments both on and off the court after calling an umpire ‘an absolute CLOWN’
By Charlotte Daly for MailOnline
Slating the music at the Australian Open in 2016
The 2016 Australian Open was a bit of a disaster for Kyrgios. He complained about the music, swore excessively and threw his racket across the court during his loss to Tomas Berdych.
Berdych took the first set in 35 minutes, with Kyrgios appearing to complain towards his box – which contained Aussie great Lleyton Hewitt – that there was not enough vocal encouragement.
However, the most notable moment of the match came when Kyrgios stepped up to the line to serve in the second set. He stopped to complain about music he could hear, which is understood to have come from the neighbouring MCG which was hosting cricket’s Big Bash League semi-final.
The 2016 Australian Open was a disaster for Kyrgios – who complained about everything
If that wasn’t enough, Kyrgios then engaged in a heated exchange with British umpire James Keothavong. Their conversation was picked up by the courtside microphones and it’s safe to say it didn’t shower Kyrgios in glory.
He said: ‘Mate, are you OK? There’s music playing in the crowd while we are playing. I’ve told you seven times. Am I hearing things? Am I hearing things? Mate, it’s a circus.’
Berdych then served out for a two-set lead as Kyrgios continued to moan as he sat down on his courtside chair, muttering: ‘It’s a f****** joke.’
Kyrgios went on to lose the match 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 and criticise the chair umpire further – saying ‘you’re a terrible referee’ as he walked off the court.
He complained about the music, swore excessively, fought with the chair umpire and threw his racket across the court during his loss to Tomas Berdych
Throwing a tantrum over the colour of his towel
You never quite know which Kyrgios will be turning up on court. He can either be fun and playful or aggressive and short tempered. Unfortunately for the staff at the 2019 Rogers Cup, it was the latter.
During his clash with Kyle Edmund, Kyrgios demanded that he was given a white towel, as opposed to a tournament-branded one. (Talk about being a diva!)
The 26-year-old refused to take part in the match until he was presented with a pristine new towel and caused quite the fuss on court while he waited.
‘I just want to know why it took you so long to get a white towel,’ Kyrgios asked officials. ‘Took you 20 minutes for this one. 20 minutes. Oh, you brought me two. Thanks.’
During his clash with Kyle Edmund, Kyrgios demanded that he was given a white towel
Caught out partying prior to his Wimbledon 2019 exit
Kyrgios has always been known for his controversial antics on court, but this incident questioned his decision-making off the court.
The Australian bad boy of tennis was seen at the Dog & Fox Pub in Wimbledon until around 11pm the night before his second-round match with Rafael Nadal in 2019.
Kyrgios was seen socialising with friends and chatting to girls at the pub on the Wednesday evening, according to sports commentator Miguel Seabra.
He wrote: ‘I just had a toast with Nick Kyrgios at the Dog & Fox. He is completely relaxed, laughing with friends, chatting with girls, drinking.
‘Quite an unorthodox preparation for tomorrow’s blockbuster, uh? I like it.’
It comes a no surprise that Kyrgios crashed out of the tournament. However, instead of reflecting on his defeat…the Australian bad-boy headed straight back to the pub to wash away his misery.
Demanding a beer on court at the 2017 French Open
Kyrgios crashed out of the 2017 French Open in spectacular form, smashing two racquets and asking for a beer mid-match.
The Australian star bombed out of the season’s second Grand slam in Paris with a 5-7 6-4 6-1 6-2 second-round loss to South African star Kevin Anderson.
Kyrgios was visibly frustrated during the match and even asked a spectator to get him a beer after losing serve in the fourth set.
‘Get me a beer now. Honest to God, get me one now,’ he said. A spectator responded: ‘You’re kidding.’ Kyrgios said: ‘I don’t think so.’
Kyrgios entered the tournament under a fitness cloud – and hip and shoulder niggles undoubtedly contributed to his demise as the then-22-year-old coughed up an uncharacteristic nine double-faults in the four-set defeat.
Additionally, Kyrgios had just lost his Grandpa – making it somewhat of an emotional torment for more reasons than one.
Kyrgios crashed out of the 2017 French Open in spectacular form after smashing two rackets
The ‘bad-boy’ also asked a spectator to get him a beer after losing serve in the fourth set
Blaming his defeat on a ‘hot chick’ in the stands
Kyrgios is known for interacting with the crowd while on court. However, it never normally impacts his performance.
The Australian bad-boy joked he had lost concentration during his 2019 Laver Cup defeat by Rodger Federer because he had spotted a ‘really hot chick in the crowd’.
The controversial 26-year-old was unable to hold off a rousing comeback from the Swiss great in Geneva, eventually being overcome 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 10-7 after one hour and 51 minutes.
Kyrgios gave an amusing post-match interview after he had informed his team of the reason behind his poor performance.
He could be heard saying: ‘I lost concentration, I saw a really hot chick in the crowd. Like, I’m being genuinely honest – I’d marry her right now. Right now.’
Kyrgios joked he had lost concentration as he had spotted a ‘really hot chick in the crowd’
Kyrgios could be heard explaining the reason behind his poor patch to his team on the bench
Throwing a chair at the Italian Open in 2019
The day after giving an explosive interview in which he admitted he ‘can’t stand’ the ‘cringeworthy’ Novak Djokovic, Kyrgios was guilty of one of his worst meltdown’s to date.
He hurled a chair onto the court at the 2019 Italian Open and kicked a bottle during an extraordinary outburst. His actions overshadowed iconic moments such as Jo Konta claiming back-to-back victories over Venus Williams and Sloane Stephens to reach the quarter finals.
Kyrgios was issued with a fine of £17,000 after losing the plot against Norway’s Casper Ruud when he was given a game penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Playing on a noisy outside court at the Foro Italico, Kyrgios was triggered by the crowd and became involved in an exchange with officials after being made to forfeit a game to go 2-1 down in the decider.
Having angrily hurled his racket to the floor he threw the fold-up chair onto the playing surface and then went into an expletive-filled rant, shouting at the chair: ‘I am giving 100 per cent to deal with f****** idiots like him, I’m done. I’m f****** done. I’m f****** done with it. I don’t give a f***.’
He then put his bag over his shoulder and walked off court of his own accord, but was officially defaulted from the match.
Kyrgios lost his temper at the 2019 Italian Open, smashing his racket and kicking a water bottle
Kyrgios then picked up a seat from courtside and hurled that into the centre of the court
Telling Stan Wawrinka a friend ‘banged his girlfriend’
Kyrgios got himself into hot water once again after brutally trash-talking his Swiss opponent, Stan Wawrinka, during a second-round clash at the 2015 Montreal Masters.
In a remark picked up by a courtside microphone, Kyrgios told third-seeded Wawrinka that a teenage Australian player, Thanasi Kokkinakis, slept with his girlfriend.
‘Kokkinakis banged your girlfriend,’ he said, midway through the second set. ‘Sorry to tell you that, mate’.
Kyrgios was referring to his Davis Cup team-mate Kokkinakis, while Wawrinka was romantically linked with Donna Vekic.
Wawrinka, who was the reigning Australian and French Open champion, was not happy with Kyrgios and took to Twitter after the match to condemn his actions.
He said: ‘So disappointing to see a fellow athlete and colleague be so disrespectful in a way could never even imagine. To [stoop] so low is not only unacceptable but also beyond belief’.
As a result of his questionable court-etiquette, Kyrgios was fined £10,000 and handed a 28-day suspended sentence.
Abusing hecklers and calling out Ben Stiller
Kyrgios lost to the 2022 Australian Open champion Nadal in a three-set thriller at Indian Wells. He was beaten 7-6 (7-0), 5-7, 6-4 to end an extraordinary tournament.
However, it was Kyrgios’ tantrum that caught everyone’s attention. Kyrgios’ most memorable outburst of the match came when he singled out Ben Stiller – who was watching from the stands with wife Christine Taylor – to deal with a heckler.
The extraordinary exchange went like this:
Kyrgios: ‘Are you good at tennis?’
Heckler: ‘No.’
Kyrgios: ‘Exactly, so don’t tell me how to play. [Pointing at Stiller and his wife who were sitting nearby] Do I tell him how to act? No.’
Kyrgios stopped his service to address a heckler in the stands during the third and final set at Indian Wells
Actor Ben Still and wife Christine Taylor found the funny side of Kyrgios’ antics after being drawn into his tirade at a heckler in the crowd
Dropping F-bomb after beating Ruud at Indian Wells
Kyrgios has had a long-standing rivalry with Casper Ruud – having previously defaulted from the the Italian Open in 2019 for throwing a chair onto the court in the final set of their clash.
Kyrgios ensured that he got the last laugh over Ruud in March 2022 – defeating the 23-year-old 6-4 ,6-4 in a ruthless performance to advance in California.
The Australian went on to taunt his opponent after emerging victorious. He was filmed saying: ‘I hear no talking now. I hear no talking now. None. F***ing none.’
However, Kyrgios later took to Instagram to apologise for his comments – admitting that emotions got the better of him during the match.
Kyrgios launched the F-bomb at old rival Casper Ruud after his win earlier this month
Kyrgios looked down the camera lens and said ‘I hear no talking now’ after his superb victory
Outburst at the chair umpire Fergus Murphy in 2019
He just can’t help himself can he? Kyrgios was fined £98,904 for smashing two racquets and calling the chair umpire a ‘f**king tool at the Cincinnati Masters in 2019.
The ATP announced the penalties on the day after the tennis bad-boy berated chair umpire Fergus Murphy during a straight sets loss to Karen Khachanov.
The ATP listed a breakdown of eight fines ranging from £2,282 to £15,216 each for violations such as unsportsmanlike conduct, verbal abuse and audible obscenity.
Kyrgios (right) was fined £98,904 for smashing two racquets and calling the chair umpire (left) a ‘f**king tool at the Cincinnati Masters in 2019
Mimicking a lewd sex act at Queen’s, 2018
You think Kyrgios would know by now that cameras are everywhere at these sort of events!
The 26-year-old was caught mimicking a crude sex act with a water bottle during a break in games at the Marin Cilic at Queen’s.
The live footage of what he thought was a private moment between himself and his player’s box was broadcast to homes across the world.
Kyrgios held his drink bottle towards his groin and appeared to pretend to masturbate.
After playing around with his drink bottle he then finished off by spraying water onto the ground and taking a sip before sharing a cheeky grin. He was fined £13,000.
Earlier in the week he shouted out ‘f***’ during his match against Kyle Edmund, forcing BBC commentary to apologise for the foul language.
His response when it was raised afterwards? ‘Fine. I don’t care’.
Kyrgios was caught on live TV mimicking a lewd sex act with a water bottle at Queen’s
Refusing to try at Shanghai, 2016
Accusations of tanking have followed Kyrgios throughout his career. He was booed at Wimbledon in 2015 for a lack of effort in returning serves from Richard Gasquet.
Fans hoped their furious reaction would teach Kyrgios a lesson, but it seemed to do little good as he did not return shots and served without effort at the Shanghai Masters just one year later.
At one point he patted a serve over the net and at another he was walking off court before his opponent, Mischa Zverev, had returned the ball.
When told to act professionally by umpire Ali Nili after swearing, he responded: ‘Can you call time so I can finish this match and go home?’.
Kyrgios was issued with a three-month ban and a £20,500 fine but he made no apologies for his conduct after the match, even taking aim at the fans.
‘I don’t owe them [the fans] anything. It’s my choice. If you don’t like it, I didn’t ask you to come watch. Just leave. You want to buy a ticket? Come watch me.
‘You know I’m unpredictable. It’s your choice. I don’t owe you anything. Doesn’t affect how I sleep at night.’
Against Mischa Zverev in Shanghai in 2016 Kyrgios refused to serve properly or return shots
He was even seen walking off the court before Zverev had returned his serve to win the point
Taking a phone call on court at Australian Open, 2016
Before a mixed doubles match in Melbourne five years ago Kyrgios answered a phone call as he sat down with partner Ajla Tomljanovic.
He could have let it go to voicemail. He could have switched it off. He could have left it in the locker room. But no, he decided to answer it on court.
For once Kyrgios escaped punishment, but eyebrows were still raised after this indiscretion, with many questioning his professionalism and commitment to the sport.
Officials investigated the incident, which had left Tomljanovic thoroughly bemused, but he avoided sanction because it was pre-match.
‘Some of my friends called me,’ Kyrgios said. When asked if it was something important, he replied: ‘Kind of, not really’.
Kyrgios took a phone call from a friend before a mixed doubles match in Melbourne in 2016
Pelting a tennis racket at ball boy
Kyrgios’ gags are usually harmless but he came extremely close to causing some serious damage when he lost his temper at Indian Wells in March 2022.
Kyrgios was forced to apologies to the ball boy he nearly hit with a tennis racket after his quarterfinal defeat to Rafa Nadal. The Aussie star fell 7-6 (7-0), 5-7, 6-4 and lost his temper immediately after the match.
He launched his racket at the wall of the arena – leaving ball boy Tei Park ducking for cover. Overnight, Kyrgios sheepishly took to Instagram to find out the identity of the ball boy and apologise.
Sharing a post to his story, Kyrgios said: ‘I just want to apologise to that ball kid at the end of the match.
‘It was a complete accident and was frustrated at the end of the match. My racket took a crazy bounce and was never my intention. If anyone knows who that ball kid is, send me a message and I will send a racket to him. I’m glad he’s OK!’
Kyrgios was forced to apologies to the ball boy he nearly hit with a tennis racket after his quarter-final defeat to Rafa Nadal at Indian Wells 2022
Purposefully aims a ball at Rafael Nadal
Kyrgios confessed he was aiming to hit Nadal with the ball during their second-round match at Wimbledon in 2019. The Australian even refused to apologise for deliberately thrashing a forehand directly at his opponent in their ill-tempered grudge match at Wimbledon.
The tennis bad-boy admitted he was ‘going for him’ and told a press conference after his four set defeat: ‘I wanted to hit him square in the chest.’
He said: ‘I don’t care. Why would I apologise? I mean, the dude has got how many slams, how much money in the bank account? I think he can take a ball to the chest. I’m not going to apologise to him at all.’
His confession has sparked an angry backlash on social media, with fans calling for the ‘spoiled brat’ to be fined or ‘banned’ from the sport.
Kyrgios said he was aiming to hit Nadal with the ball during their 2019 clash at Wimbledon
The Spaniard (furthest away) managed to stop the ball from hitting his body with his racquet
Ignoring questions and chugging a Stella Artois
Kyrgios showcased his bizarre behaviour once again during a press conference 2019. He ignored a reporter’s question in favour of drinking a beer.
Kyrgios had been playing for Team World who lost to Team Europe during the Laver Cup in Geneva, Switzerland.
After the final tie between Milos Raonic and Alexander Zverev, Kyrgios attended a press conference joined by team captain and US tennis legend John McEnroe.
Kyrgios was angry about a question regarding his loss to Roger Federer during the competition and opted to drink he beer rather than answer.
However, when promoted, he said: ‘Probably just had to do with something that I was playing someone that’s probably the best to ever play the sport.
‘I don’t think it was a lack of shot selection or lack of discipline or lack of power or lack of anything. I think the guy I was playing was just pretty good. Don’t you think so? Yeah. It’s a pretty bad question, to be honest.’
He decided to chug a beer over answering a reporter’s question during a press conference
Brands Bernard Tomic ‘dumb’ and ‘irrelevant’ in long-running feud – as rival challenges him to a boxing match
Last month Kyrgios poured cold water on a potential boxing bout with arch rival Bernard Tomic, insisting he has ‘bigger fish to fry’ than taking on the ‘dead broke’ World No 417.
The Australian tennis duo have been embroiled in a war of words for years and their feud escalated even further last month after Kyrgios labelled Tomic ‘the most hated athlete in Australia’.
Tomic, 29, responded by challenging Kyrgios, 27, to a one-off battle on the grass court, with each player stumping up $1million in a winner-takes-all clash.
The 29-year-old then changed the arena of their battle to the boxing ring, demanding that they ‘sort this out as men’.
Yet Kyrgios has distanced himself from a boxing debut, with the Canberra-born star expressing sympathy for Tomic, who in 2016 reached a career-high ranking of No 17.
‘He’s not very good anymore, he’s not relevant anymore, and he’s obviously got money issues,’ Kyrgios told the Courier Mail.
‘For someone who actually tried to stand up for him before and tried to help him out, like my family’s helped him out before, I paid for his flights back home from Shanghai because he had no money. So for him to come out and attack is extremely disrespectful I think.
‘When he’s challenging me for boxing matches – like first of all, I don’t know who’s going to put up $1 million for him because he’s dead broke. Second of all, I have bigger fish to fry at the moment. I’m trying to get ready for Wimbledon. US Open. I’ve got off court contracts, tournaments still pay me to show up.
‘And I don’t think that’s happening for him at the moment. But maybe one day, I would love to challenge him in there. I feel like I’ve got him on fitness.’
Tomic has rubbished Kyrgios’ claims.
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