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Sport Tennis

Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios calls ATP ‘corrupt’ for $100,000 fine

Australian tennis star was fined for insulting a chair umpire and smashing two rackets



Nick Kyrgios of Australia celebrates his win during his Men’s Singles first round match against Steve Johnson of the United States on day two of the 2019 US Open.
Image Credit: AFP

New York: Nick Kyrgios says the ATP is “corrupt” for fining him more than $100,000 this month for his behaviour during a match.

Asked if that recent punishment from the men’s tour — only the latest in a long series that also included a suspension — affected him mentally coming into the US Open, he replied: “Not at all. ATP’s pretty corrupt, anyway, so I’m not fussed about it at all.”

Kyrgios insulted a chair umpire and left the court to smash two rackets during a second-round loss at the Western & Southern Open this month.

The next day, the ATP listed a breakdown of eight fines ranging from $3,000 to $20,000 each, for violations such as unsportsmanlike conduct, verbal abuse and audible obscenity.

When a reporter asked a follow-up question about his use of the word “corrupt” following his straight-set victory over Steve Johnson that ended past 1am on Wednesday at Flushing Meadows, Kyrgios first referenced his fines totalling $113,000.

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Then he added: “Why are we talking about something that happened three weeks ago, when I just chopped up someone (in the) first round of US Open?”

Kyrgios strutted into the second round, sweeping past Steve Johnson 6-3, 7-6, 6-4.

It was nearly midnight when the last match of the day started but Kyrgios kept the crowd awake with his usual mixture of great tennis and bad language, including a warning in the second set for cursing after he was angered when a fan moved behind the baseline.

But minutes later he summoned some of his best tennis to prevent Johnson from getting into the match, seizing a 6-0 lead in the tiebreaker. He capped that run by sprinting to chase down a drop shot, then strutting near the net after winning the point.

Kyrgios being Kyrgios, the Australian received a code violation for an audible obscenity following an argument with the chair umpire.

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