With Nick Kyrgios, the controversy is never far away. In the predictable world of tennis, the 27-year-old Australian is the multi-faced performer. At Wimbledon, he alternates brilliant play with nasty tirades against umpires, linesmen and opponents. Is he a curse or a blessing to tennis?
Eight years after beating Rafael Nadal in his Wimbledon debut, he is suddenly in the final without having to play the semi-final. On Thursday evening, his opponent, Nadal, withdrew injured. According to Spanish media, he has a 7 millimeter tear in his abdominal muscle.
The 36-year-old Spaniard already suffered a lot from his injury in the quarterfinals against American Taylor Fritz. After 45 minutes of training on Thursday, it turned out that he was not fit enough to face Kyrgios on Friday. His injury hindered him too much in serving.
Thus Wimbledon was denied another meeting between Kyrgios and Nadal, perhaps the greatest opposites imaginable. The meeting between the two tennis players had not just been a confrontation of different playing styles. Even more it was a clash of cultures.
While the humble Nadal behaves according to the rules of classic tennis, Kyrgios is the unpredictable figurehead of the counterculture. For some he is the entertainer who enriches the neat sport of tennis, others see in him the rebel who violates the unwritten rules of tennis.
The dividing line is also thin at Wimbledon. “You won’t hear me complaining about all the attention,” he said when asked about the division he provoked. “Any publicity is good publicity.” The number 40 in the world is still known as the loose cannon that has wasted his talents for too long, while hiding a grand slam winner inside him.
bad boy
In London, the bad boy of tennis extends from all sides. He won the hearts of tennis fans with his devastating serve, hitting balls between the legs and short swishing forehands. But also because of his misbehavior, he knew all the spotlight was on him.
He already received fines for spitting at a spectator (almost 10 thousand euros) and for unsportsmanlike behavior in the third round match against Stefanos Tsitsipas (3,800 euros). “Good shot!” he yelled through the stadium when Tsitsipas produced a drop-off. In tennis it is not customary to talk to your opponent.
“I like what he means to the sport because he is different. That’s not wrong,” Tsitsipas said. “But there comes a time when you get tired of it. He is constantly bullying the opponent. He probably used to be a bully at school.’
And Pat Cash, the Australian former Wimbledon champion, did not have a good word for his compatriot. “He has taken tennis to the lowest level I have ever seen in sportsmanship, cheating, manipulation, name calling and aggressive behavior towards umpires and linesmen.”
In a world that is not his own, Kyrgios has experienced a lack of appreciation for years. At the same time, in the past week he has complained about too old linesmen with bad eyesight, railed against umpires and flouted Wimbledon’s strict dress code.
White is the dress code at the oldest and traditional grand slam tournament. But before his match against Tsitsipas, Kyrgios came out on the track in red sneakers. And afterwards, he swapped his white cap for a black one before doing his interview on the track.
“I’m not above the rules. But I do what I want and just love wearing my Jordans,” he referred to the shoes named after the famous basketball player Michael Jordan. He often admitted that as a child he preferred to be a basketball player rather than a tennis player.
trash talk
In London he makes little effort to disguise this fondness. “I see the NBA as a good example,” he said during his verbal war with Tsitsipas. “Those guys are warriors. A little bit of trash talk (dirty talk, red.) should be possible. And then he’ll say I bullied him.’
While the criticism for his behavior raged over him like a storm, he showed on the track why he is seen as an outsider for the title at Wimbledon. After years in which he struggled with loneliness, depression and thought about suicide, he says he feels better than ever. “I didn’t expect to get this chance again,” he said after reaching the semi-finals.
Kyrgios also couldn’t get out of his rhythm a day before his quarterfinals by his ex-girlfriend for assault. He is due to appear in court next month in Australia. “I would like to tell my side of the story, but my lawyers have advised me not to say anything,” he said after his victory over Chilean Cristian Garín.
After Nadal’s resignation, the flamboyant tennis player is closer than ever to fulfilling his eternal promise. He never made it past the quarterfinals of a grand slam tournament. Now he awaits the battle for his long-awaited grand slam title on Center Court.