MELBOURNE, Australia: Nick Kyrgios soon took the title at the 2021 Australian Open.
On Monday evening, Kyrgios turned his attention to his player’s box and exclaimed aloud, “Tell your girlfriend to get out of my box!”
It is not clear exactly who and what he was referring to, but he proved to be the catalyst for a rapid change of fortune; Kyrgios quickly retreated and tied the contest at 2, and immediately murmured, “I wonder why?”
“Tell your girlfriend to get out of my box!” 😂
Add another Nick Kyrgios classic moment to the list. 🗒
I’LL SEE: @ Canal9
STREAM: https://t.co/ykPpc0k2wf# 9WWOS #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/ul2PWBlaFQ– Wide world of sports (@wwos) February 8, 2021
From there, the Australian was about to go 5-4 ahead in the set before stopping the proceedings again, this time calling a member of the crowd for speaking between the first and second. service of your opponent. “Rest assured, brother, have some respect for the child,” Kyrgios said.
He approached the chair referee after that match, asking him out loud if he was going to do anything about it.
Kyrgios continued to get the first set and was rarely challenged on the way to a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory, occasionally offering some advice in the process, and at some point asking his opponent for an unused towel during a tip change.
After the match, he said he was trying to expand and adjust to the pace and expectations that Grand Slam tennis entails, something he has lost over the past year.
“I’m a new case when I’m on the track, [but] they were just hot stuff, “Kyrgios said.” I was just out there, all those emotions again. I almost liked to say, “Dude, it’s time to wake up.” It’s not just, you know, a 250 [event]. … [In] for my mind, it was saying to me, ‘Man, it’s the Australian Open again’ ”.
With a year of professional tennis, Kyrgios shifted his focus to off-court activities, from his NK Foundation, which works with disadvantaged children, to his charity work, where he delivered groceries to Australian families who they needed. At last year’s Open, he made a promise of service that helped kick-start a large fundraising effort to alleviate bushfires.
He said, even though he feels he always had a sense of “perspective,” he begins to appreciate things in life other than tennis.
“I wouldn’t say I don’t care [tennis] because it’s something I’ve dedicated my whole life to, “he said.” It’s more that I do a lot of things with my platform outside of tennis that I wouldn’t be able to do if I weren’t a good tennis player. I think that kind of perspective I have helps me and my game. I definitely play a little looser than the other players, but it’s my way of playing.
“Like, I have a lot of things in my life that I’ve gone through, and I’ve gone through a lot of things, and that’s a real thing instead of, you know, losing a tennis game … At the end of the day, I know it’s just a tennis match. Obviously I’ll get angry while I play. I’m a competitor, I always want to win. I don’t win because of losses. “
Kyrgios also responded to the latest comments from eighth Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic, who is part of a recent round-trip that has apparently invested the script in the sport and has a vision of Kyrgios as a unlikely voice of reason.
Djokovic has had an uneven year since mid-2020, when he went ahead with his Adria Tour in Croatia, where he and a number of renowned tennis stars hired COVID-19. He also publicly questioned the effectiveness of the masks, said he opposed vaccinations and submitted a list of applications on behalf of players from Melbourne’s hotel quarantine system on their arrival in Australia.
Djokovic once again drew the wrath of local fans during his pre-tournament press conference, during which the eighth Melbourne champion said he did not respect Kyrgios “off the track”.
“My respect goes to him for the tennis he plays. I think he is a very talented guy, he has a great game and he has shown that he has a quality to beat any player in the world,” Djokovic said. “Off the track, I don’t have much respect for him, honestly. That’s where I’ll close it. I really don’t have any comments for him and his own comments for me or anything else he tries to do.”
On Monday, Kyrgios responded when asked about the Serb’s comments.
“It’s weird for me,” Kyrgios said. “I read his comments. He said he doesn’t respect me off the track. In fact, it would make perfect sense to me if he said, ‘I don’t respect the man on the track,’ because I understand if he doesn’t.” I don’t agree with some of my mischief on the track that I’ve done in the past. “
Meanwhile, Kyrgios is looking to make his way to his home, Slam, as he will face Frenchman Ugo Humbert on Wednesday in the second round. His best performance in Melbourne was in 2015, when he reached the quarter-finals. And he has yet to overcome this round in any Slam (his only appearance in the quarterfinals was in 2014 at Wimbledon). Either way, he said he won’t lose his overall outlook.
“I’m very lucky to even be in my position. I’m healthy. You know, I have good friends, a great family and an amazing girlfriend at home. I’m blessed,” he said with a smile. “Look at me, I’m a wise man now.”