Australia’s Nick Kyrgios ruffled the feathers of Rafael Nadal during their second round match at Wimbledon on Thursday.
Kyrgios, who has gained a reputation for having outrageous outbursts during his matches, at one point received a stare down from one of the top tennis players in the world. Kyrgios earned Nadal’s scowl when he hit a booming forehand directly at Nadal, striking him in his midsection.
Kyrgios admitted after his four-set loss to Nadal that he tried to hit the Spaniard on purpose and refused to apologize for the play.
“Why would I apologize,” Kyrgios asked. “I didn’t hit him. Hit his racquet, no? Why would I apologize? I won the point.”
According to Yahoo Sports, Kyrgios was told that it was customary to apologize to players after hitting them with a ball during the match. He said he didn’t care.
“Is it? And?” he said. “I don’t care. Why would I apologize? I mean, the dude has how many slams, how much money in the bank account? I think he can take a ball to the chest, bro. I’m not going to apologize to him at all. I was going for him. Yeah, I wanted to hit him square in the chest. Like, he’s got decent hands.”
Nadal called Kyrgios’ actions “dangerous.”
“When he hit the ball like this, [it] is dangerous. [It] is not dangerous for me, [it] is dangerous for a line referee, dangerous for a crowd,” the two-time Wimbledon champ said. “When you hit the ball like this, you don’t know where the ball goes. I know he’s a big talented player, but I am a professional player, too. I know when you hit this kind of ball, the ball can go anywhere.”
Kyrgios dropped the match 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (3).
