By: Eric Zeng
Nick Kyrgios is a hot-headed and disruptive Australian tennis prodigy. Last Saturday at Wimbledon, fans shouted for and against him, as No. 4 seed Stefan Tsitsipas grew angrier with every interruption he caused. Kyrgios went on to win, but not without receiving severe backlash from the media, tennis fans, and Tsitsipas himself.
Kyrgios regularly scolds umpires and judges, pesters workers, and disrespects his opponents, receiving fines of up to tens of thousands of dollars. He also often blames referees, the media, and angry spectators for his losses. However, his skill keeps many young fans watching. “Everywhere I go I’m seeing full stadiums,” he said. “The media loves to write that I am bad for the sport but clearly not.”
Against Tsitsipas, Kyrgios was up to his normal shenanigans. Throughout the three hours, he was complaining and berating the referees, supervisors, and chair umpire. He was irritating Tsitsipas, throwing underhand and even between-the-legs serves. Tsitsipas was sick of Kyrgios and the abundant interruptions of the game. Tsitsipas even sent a ball into the crowd and tried to peg Kyrgios. He said that he was just responding to Kyrgios’s disrespect, telling the umpire that one of them was trying to play tennis, and the other one was trying to make the match a circus show.
Tsitsipas went on to say that Kyrgios “bullies opponents,” and that Kyrgios “has an evil side to him, which if exposed, can do a lot of harm and bad to the people around him.” He called for rules to be set to limit Kyrgios’s actions.
Kyrgios responded by calling Tsitsipas soft and commented that Tsitsipas was the one hitting balls at people. He said that he does not look to make friends on the tennis court. Despite the arguable win, Kyrgios is now in the round of 16.
Rafael Nadal, widely known as one of the best and fairest players, said that at the end of the day, “everyone has to go to bed with being calm with the things [they] have done.” Will a couple nights of sleep change Kyrgios, or will rules have to be set?