Tennis player who was accused of tanking a game at Wimbledon had another meltdown at a tournament
20-year-old Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios lost his cool on the court at the Davis Cup after another poor performance Friday.
Earlier in July, Kyrgios was criticized at Wimbledon for seemingly tanking a game out of frustration.
Kyrgios was serving, down 1-0 to Richard Gasquet in the second set, when he double-faulted and lost the game. During the next game, he simply stopped trying.
Adding to the criticism, Kyrgios then held a contemptuous press conference in which he challenged a reporter to try and return Gasquet's serve and mocked the idea that he's a "bad boy of tennis" for showing emotion on the court.
On Friday at the Davis Cup in Australia, Kyrgios once again lost his cool while facing 115th-ranked Aleksandr Nedovyesov of Kazakhstan. Despite being ranked seventh, Kyrgios was defeated in four sets, tiring from the heat, according to The Guardian's Helen Davidson.
After losing a point, Kyrgios reportedly shouted "I don't want to be here!"
Later, after losing a point, Kyrgios took the ball and slammed it out of the court. He received a warning after:
When the match ended, after he shook hands with Nedovyesov and the umpire, Kyrgios smashed both of his rackets:
After the match, when asked about his "I don't want to be here" exclamation, Kyrgios said it boiled down to frustration in his game:
"I didn't think I was having that much fun out there to be honest. I was struggling to find myself in the match. I couldn't get my feet set on any ball. My serve was probably the only thing I'd give a little bit of credit [for]. I don't think I really found that balance of enjoying myself and playing some good tennis."
The comment nonetheless raised eyebrows as Kyrgios had said before that tennis isn't his favorite sport - he enjoys basketball more.
During Wimbledon, Roger Federer came to the defense of Kyrgios tanking a game, saying it could be a good strategy to mentally reset. Nonetheless, Kyrgios' on-court antics and icy press conferences have made him an easy target compared to the generally mild-mannered players.