Nick Kyrgios Continues To Be A Lightning Rod For Controversy At Wimbledon [Video]

This is silly. Every player lets their opponent hit a service winner to get out of a game sometimes. Even Djokovic does it just about every match. If Kyrgios did anything wrong, it was failing to be more discreet.

But let’s not pretend that he’s the only one who has ever stopped playing 100% for a point or two.

July 7th, 2015 at 9:18 am

There was a major controversy today in Australia where Dawn Fraser essentially told Kyrgios and Tomic to “go back to where you came from.” Thankfully she was called out for her bigotry and ended up apologising. It was so disgraceful coming from a so-called Australian sport legend.
Nick’s behaviour is definitely unacceptable but that’s got nothing to do with him coming from an immigrant family.

July 7th, 2015 at 10:09 am

Tennisfan,

Spot on. I watched news all evening, Dawn Fraser was torn to pieces and rightfully so.

July 7th, 2015 at 10:32 am

There are these people called fans. They pay money (…usually a lot of it) to watch professional tennis players play tennis, not to see a players childishly tank points away. And there is a difference between strategically letting some points go vs. what Kyrgios did. Kyrgios’ brand of tanking has to be dealt with swiftly and harshly!

I think Kyrgios is a tremendous talent but I also think the ATP has to step in and suspend him for this. He’s cheating people out of what they paid to see. Not at all acceptable.

July 7th, 2015 at 12:36 pm

Kyrgios is a loser. He looks like a loser, acts like a loser. I guess he can go back to his stupid video games and forget about tennis. Thank goodness for small favors.

July 7th, 2015 at 12:40 pm

The Q&A above is even more disconcerting. Kyrgios is rationalizing the stupidity of his actions.

This is something Tennis Australia needs to also do something about. I would perhaps be inclined to deny him entry to next year’s AO.

And yes, I know, he’s young. But he’s also more worldly than most of us. Some lessons have to be learned the hard way. Bad behavior has been part of the sport here and there. But it’s somewhat tolerable if the person doing it is leaving it all out on the court. Want to behave badly and work half-heartedly? Then professional tennis is the wrong pursuit.

July 7th, 2015 at 12:45 pm

@tennisfan

try that again with more self-righteous, delusional egalitarianism.

then maybe you’ll get a pat on the head.

July 7th, 2015 at 12:49 pm

Its a shame really if he knuckles down,he has all the makings of been a fantastic player,i do agree with some of the things he says,and the press do ask some stupid questions at times,and im not saying he should bow to everyone and be all PC,and its great to have players with spirit and personalities,but sometimes he should just rise above it,never thought id say this but he makes Gulbis sound sedate by comparison….

July 7th, 2015 at 1:46 pm

I remember being embarrassed for the way Mac and Connors would act on court. I wished they’d been from another country at the time. I didn’t support either one of them….of course had nothing to do with racism……we have the same skin color and all born in the USA!

July 7th, 2015 at 2:06 pm

you dont see racism when link is made with Kyrgios pre Aussie family?

if you dont then nothing can safe you.

July 7th, 2015 at 2:12 pm

^I do actually,i never condone racism in any way,shape or form,Tennisfan was spot on in his/her post nothing more to say really….^

July 7th, 2015 at 2:52 pm

Okiegal – I loved Mac. – he could be a pain in his day – but I loved it —(he’s spoilt it now by being a pain-in-the-derrier as a commentator).
Similarly I enjoy Krygios – maybe a bit of a spoilt pup right now – but Oh his potential??!!

July 7th, 2015 at 3:25 pm

@KatH…..Will definitely agree on Nick’s potential.
He has so much natural talent, has a lot of growing up to do…..he will learn, in time! He is fun to watch…..does some amazing stuff. We will see how his career pans out for him….should be interesting!!

July 7th, 2015 at 3:35 pm

Total equivocal racial equality is a progressive dream that they are so committed to that they think lies and threats and actual sanctions for disagreeing with them is needed to finally achieve the Noble Goal.
But instead of making us color or gender blind, it divides people into tribal groups.

Does a black noting a lack of other races in the National Basketball Association make that black a black supremacist? Or an Asian noting Asians hit well above their population size not in crime rate but academic achievement – is an Asian supremacist racist like the 19th century Chinese vs. the non-Han barbarians or Japan believing in the Yamoto Race?

It is also a natural instinct for, say for example, citizens seeing immigrants not “behaving in the French Way” and bashing French society or culture — to say if you don’t like it, go back to Haiti or Algeria….
That is not racist or Islamophobic, it is a natural, “you don’t like it, leave” reaction.

July 7th, 2015 at 6:40 pm

Hippie Chick – “I do actually,i never condone racism in any way,shape or form.”
———————————
I personally condone racism, sexism that the sexes are not equal in every way. As long as it is truthful. Truth is better than PC lies pretending otherwise. Asians do have a harder time holding their liquor than other races because on average because they produce less of an enzyme that breaks down alcohol. The maternal instinct exists and is not a nurture vs nature thing, and instances of bad mothering does not negate the whole observation.
And some sex choice preferences are things not to applaud and hope your young adult kids try out. Polyandry, beastiality, pederasty, cradle robbing rich old lechers, surgical transgendering..
I proudly hold “religiously bigoted views”. I consider violent extreme Salafists a problem far bigger than “the violent Christians and Buddhists that must exist somewhere.” I am completely un-PC in believing that Polynesian human sacrifice and cannibalism religions had to be wiped out in the 18th and 19th centuries had to be wiped out, even if that OFFENDED the islanders and New Guinea tribesmen and showed INTOLERANCE..

July 7th, 2015 at 6:57 pm

CF1,
Sorry but in this particular case you are wrong, Dawn Fraser’s remark was racist, very much so, since she said that Nick’s behavior (tanking) is result of his immigrant background, that Australians (read Anglosaxon ones) don’t behave that way and that people who behave that way should go back to countries where their parents came from. Cannot be more racist than that. Dawn Fraser is sport legend, gold medalist from three consecutive Olympic games, she shoud know better than that, you would expect that kind of reaction from some bogan in the middle of the nowhere, but not from her.
I came in this country 30 years ago, I sm not Australian and will never be, but I have nothing but praise for Australians, I was accepted by them with no problem, I was the only Wog in the company I started and learned my trade, everybody was fair to me, never changed my name to English one (even it is hard to pronounce), but there is always idiots that will try make you feel less worth as new resident of thia great country, and Dawn Fraser made idiot of herself, but luckily they are extreme minority. I, myself, as an immigrant am against Immigrants who are making society within society and disrespect the country that they live in and raise their families, that is where the problem is but Wogs (Italians, Greeks and Eastern Europeans) and majority of other immigrants are not one of thrm, though there is certain group of immigrants who are tarnish the image of rest of us.
This is what Dawn Fraser said and tell me again it wasn’t racist, my kids didn’t like it and they are birn here, everything was fine until 1:20 and the irony was that reporter, Karl Stefanovic, who was interviewing her is of immigrant backround himself, have look:

http://youtu.be/yqsIGyIkoro

July 7th, 2015 at 7:45 pm

Well, Wog, it is the same remark that was simultaneously directed at Kyrgios AND Tomic. Maybe some ethnic bias behind it, but not racist. You have immigrants or sons of immigrants denouncing Australia and Australian tennis. The 2 don’t like it that much, along with the Muslim youth fleeing to the West then denouncing the West, leave.

July 7th, 2015 at 9:01 pm

CF1,

I don’t have a problem with what you are saying, Tomic family brought them on themselves by blackmailing Tennis Australia for years that they are going to switch their allegiance to Germany or Croatia, even the latest outburst was caused when they asked for more money for young Sara (sister) and this time around TA said NO, the older Tomic trying to use his son to get more money for daughter was just OTT, but Kyrgios family neve ever disrespected Australia in any way or shape and Nick is of the mixed race as you can see, so yes you can take it as a racist comment since discussion was about Nick’s behavior in London, which was unacceptable but has nothing to do with ethnic/racial background.

July 7th, 2015 at 9:25 pm

And Boris feels today’s TOP players don’t show any EMOTION .. And what does Kygrios get ???

Fined £1290($2000) for Gasquet match,$7500 for Raonic match !!!

So his £127000 for reaching 4th round slashed to £120,900..

BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY

July 7th, 2015 at 10:36 pm

Even Gasquet, has now been fined £1,900 ($3,000) for

‘abuse of racquets’.

July 7th, 2015 at 10:40 pm

Chris Ford1 when i said i do actually,i was replying to Sienna @2.12pm July 7th,meaning you dont see racism when the link is made with Kyrigios pre Aussie family?if you dont then nothing can save you,well most people here know me well enough by now to know what i meant,Dawn Frazer might be a racist by the sound of it,i definetly am not….

July 8th, 2015 at 2:09 am

Wogboy it was racist,and the worst kind of racist is one that doesnt even realize they are,and try to back track and apologize after saying what she said was all rather hollow,Kyrigios brother is right the apology meant nothing….

July 8th, 2015 at 2:21 am

The points in question were definitely tanks – I don’t care what he says – but to be honest, I don’t understand what the point of that rule is? Unless he’s manufacturing a result (which he was not doing) I don’t see what the problem is – he’s the one who loses, and if the crowd don’t like it they can go watch another match.

The press get on him about it, but I’m guessing those were Australian journalists, and regardless, I don’t really see what the point was of hammering him on that question. There’s no journalistic value to it, and it seems to me they were just angry at him, although I don’t have the audio. I say, ask the question once and and move on.

I also feel that while the letter of the law is incongruent with its intent but not it’s application. Technically Kyrigos has to be out of his chair when the umpire calls time – failure to do so is a time violation, and it doesn’t matter why. In this case, the umpire is actually doing him a favor by not giving him a time violation or code of conduct violation, and merely asking him to hurry up.

I think the latitude is warranted since he is not a slow player when he serves, nor when he returns, and as such, the overall viewing experience isn’t hindered (which is the intent of all the time violation rules) by him taking an extra 30 seconds to take his socks off.

So really, the bottom line is that Kyrigos should just shut up and hurry up because the umpire is doing him a favor, and upholding the spirit of the rule, if not the letter.

July 8th, 2015 at 1:51 pm

Okay, I just saw the press conference, and the reporter were indeed English, but I feel they were just stirring the pot, and backed him into a corner. He didn’t actually answer the question, and they could have let it go at that, but they insisted on an answer and that’s when it got contentious.

All a bit of handbags if you ask me – I still think that rule is one of the dumbest in tennis – how are you going to police that, and why would you bother?

July 8th, 2015 at 2:40 pm

For the record I wasn’t talking about HC but the comment below where it was actually brushed aside.
meanwhile CF and wogboy show racist color…
this wimbly is actually good for getting to know the true color of some posters….

July 8th, 2015 at 11:42 pm