“On Grass, I would definitely be….”- Nick Kyrgios makes a huge claim about his grass-court game ahead of Wimbledon
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Nick Kyrgios
Nick Kyrgios believes he could be in the top five or ten in the ATP rankings on grass. The 27-year-old made the remarks on Tennis TV following his Round of 16 encounter at the Halle Open, where he defeated Daniel Altmaier 6-3, 7-5. He said, “On grass, you know, I would be top-5, top-10 in the world, definitely. If I’m feeling good on grass, I feel really, really comfortable on it.”
Despite his claims, the Australian was defeated by Andy Murray in the semi-finals of his first grass-court competition of the year in Stuttgart. To add to the irony, Kyrgios’ best performance on grass does not support his assertions, as it was a quarterfinal finish on his debut in 2014, and he hasn’t advanced past the third round of Wimbledon since 2016.
Nick Kyrgios says he received ‘racial slurs’ during his match against Andy Murray in the Boss Open
During his Boss Open semi-final match against Andy Murray in Stuttgart, Nick Kyrgios claims he was subjected to racist insults.
After becoming frustrated and smashing a racquet at the start of the second set, the 27-year-old was penalised, and he has since taken to Instagram to explain his on-court behaviour. Kyrgios said that his actions were motivated by “racial slurs” from the audience and that they were “messed up,” that he was punished for replying to comments made by the audience.
He wrote, “When is this going to stop? Dealing with racial slurs from the crowd? I UNDERSTAND THAT MY BEHAVIOUR ISN’T THE BEST ALL THE TIME – but ‘you little BLACK SHEEP’, ‘shut up and play’… little comments like this are NOT ACCEPTABLE. When I retaliate to the crowd, I get penalised. This is messed up.”
Murray clinched the set following a 7-5 tie-break triumph in the first set, which prompted Kyrgios to throw his racquet at the floor, shattering it in two, and suffering a point penalty. He subsequently received a game penalty for unsportsmanlike behaviour after repeatedly arguing with the referee, giving Murray a comfortable lead in the second set. The incident knocked Kyrgios off his game, and he was unable to recover, allowing Murray to take advantage and book his place in the final against Matteo Berrettini.
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Pritha Ghosh
(414 Articles Published)