On day five of the Australian Open the Nick Kyrgios show began — featuring claims that rules were not being followed, a complaint that the umpire was horrendous, and the assertion that tennis is “so, so, so dumb” and doesn’t “make any f***ing sense”.
Having told tournament organisers that he was not fit enough to warrant a wild-card pick in the singles draw, the Australian took to the court in the doubles alongside his great friend Thanasi Kokkinakis. It did not take Kyrgios, 30, long to whip the animated late-night crowd into a frenzy. There was the usual racket-throwing, expletives and rude exchanges with the umpire. He even found time at 5-4 in the deciding set to drink a can of Pepsi and attempt to flip it through the air and land it upright (he failed).
Kyrgios and Kokkinakis, who won the 2022 doubles title here, were beaten 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (10-4) and after shaking the hands of Jason Kubler and Marc Polmans, Kyrgios leathered a ball over the stadium roof and exited the stage to huge applause. This was an all-Aussie clash but, listening to the crowd, you would be forgiven for thinking Kubler and Polmans were the enemies.
In his press conference Kyrgios explained why he was so unhappy with the umpire, Marijana Veljovic, and the rules. At 2-1 in the tie-break Kokkinakis smashed a volley winner but he was ruled to have leant over the net and made contact in the opponents’ half of the court. It was Kubler who asked for the contact point to be reviewed. “I’m not playing any more,” Kyrgios mumbled under his breath as he looked towards his box.
At the change of ends at 4-2 there was more complaining to the umpire, who leant forward and waggled her index finger as if to admonish a naughty child. “We’re only playing by some rules tonight guys, don’t worry,” Kyrgios shouted into the quiet arena. “F***ing do one.”
To make matters worse, there was an ace by Kokkinakis which was ruled a let. Replays appeared to show that the ball cleared the net by some distance and that the ace should have stood. Instead, the umpire did not overrule the technology.
“You know what the issue is,” Kyrgios, who spent much of the press conference shaking his head, said. “How can you review a ball that’s been hit over the net [Kokkinakis’s volley] but you can’t review a serve over the net? Doesn’t make any f***ing sense.
Kyrgios smashed his racket and swore on court
LINTAO ZHANG/GETTY IMAGES
“Like, that’s why I’m pissed off. Like, we’re playing for millions of dollars. We’ve been both injured, both trying to get to this stage. Some of these rules are just so, so, so dumb. They don’t make sense.
“Yeah, so how can you not review a let? How can you not review that? How can you not just watch a ball just go over the net? How dumb does that sound? Next question.
Kyrgios and Kokkinakis won the doubles title in 2022
JOEL CARRETT/ALAMY
“For me personally, I put in a lot of work. I’m probably in some of the best shape I’ve been in for a while. It just pisses me off that we go out there and compete, and some of these rules are just so grey.
“In my opinion, he’s trying to serve, [with] what he’s got left, he hits a great serve to start the tie-break. It’s a horrendous call by the referee, horrendous. No let. We do so much hard work to get out there. You feel like you’re hard done by. I’m not saying that’s the reason we lost. Obviously, Kubes and Polmans, they’re great players. Just pisses me off because now we both have to go back to the drawing board. Physically, we’re hobbling. It’s just annoying.”
Claims that the automated let calls were broken also came from Kubler. At 4-4, 40-40 in the deciding set Kubler said there was a “massive let” after Kyrgios had punished a gentle return from a Kokkinakis serve. The umpire waved Polmans away, the crowd booed and Kyrgios and Kokkinakis — “Double K”, as they like to be called — went on to lead 5-4.
We entered a final-set tie-break and when a hideous Kyrgios forehand ballooned long Kubler and Polmans did not waste their match point. “When you play those two you know you are in for an experience,” Kubler said after the match.
Kyrgios’ involvement in the tournament is not over yet. He is scheduled to play mixed doubles alongside the Canadian Leylah Fernandez on Friday.
Meanwhile, in the men’s singles draw the 40-year-old Stan Wawrinka twice came from a set down to win an epic, claiming a fifth-set ten-point tie-break against the world No198 Arthur Géa to make the third round.
The three-times grand-slam singles champion, who is the oldest player in the men’s draw, will retire at the end of the year. He is playing like a man who knows that each outing could be his last here in Melbourne, where he won his first grand-slam title 12 years ago. He won 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (10-3) in four hours and 34 minutes.
“Today was again a big battle, of course. I was not feeling great,” Wawrinka, now ranked No139, said. “For me playing here, playing with this amazing atmosphere, this support, it really gave me a lot of energy on the court to keep staying positive, to keep fighting, to keep pushing myself. I’m super happy with the result.”