Nick Kyrgios was defeated by Mischa Zverev in straight sets at the Shanghai Rolex Masters on Wednesday, and let’s just say he found some news ways to embarrass himself.
Kyrgios basically threw the match, putting forth zero effort against the 110th-ranked player in the world and arguing with the chair umpire and some fans along the way. Even for a player who has a reputation for being an immature crybaby, the behavior was hard to watch:
Nick Kyrgios: Tank mode ON #NextGen pic.twitter.com/KyXa16Fwtj
— Ardeal (@UnArdeal) October 12, 2016
The tanking led to a lecture from the chair umpire, but Kyrgios wasn’t fazed.
Best efforts from @NickKyrgios pic.twitter.com/vXwoLQRyyu
— Ardeal (@UnArdeal) October 12, 2016
Fans basically booed Kyrgios off the court, and rightfully so. When one spectator spoke up and told him to respect the game and the people who paid to watch, Kyrgios fired back.
“You wanna come here and play? Sit down and shut up and watch,” he said, per Jay Busbee of Yahoo Sports.
Kyrgios ripped the fans after the match when asked if he understands why they were upset.
“No, I can’t really understand it at all,” he said. “They don’t know what I’m going through. I’m good at hitting a tennis ball at the net. Like, big deal. I don’t owe them anything. It’s like it’s my choice.
“If you don’t like it, I didn’t ask you to come watch. Just leave. If you’re so good at giving advice and so good at tennis, why aren’t you as good as me? Why aren’t you on the tour?”
As if it matters, Kyrgios later decided to apologize with a tweet.
Not good enough today on many levels, I'm better than that. I can go on about excuses but there are none. Sorry #StillAWorkInProgress
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) October 12, 2016
Unfortunately, Kyrgios’ talent is constantly overshadowed by his immature antics. Remember, he’s the same guy who was banned from tennis for a month last year for making a nasty comment about a woman Stan Wawrinka was supposedly dating. The guy can’t help himself.
