Aussie tennis player Nick Kyrgios has been suspended for his bizarre outburst during a match at the Shanghai Rolex Masters last week.
During the less-than-stellar performance, Kyrgios seemed totally uninterested in playing against German Mischa Sverev, lobbing lame serves and walking off the court midway through a set. The No. 14 player went on to throw the 6-3 6-1 match while asking the umpire, "Can you call time so I can finish this match and go home?"
Kyrgios also got into an argument with a fan during the match and was eventually booed off the court.
But that's not all. When asked at a press conference later on if he owed fans a better effort, he responded as such:
"What does that event mean? I'm good at hitting a tennis ball at the net. Big deal. I don't owe them anything. If you don't like it, I didn't ask you to come watch. Just leave."
In response to the incident, the Association of Tennis Players (ATP), tennis' governing body, suspended Kyrgios through 2017 for "conduct contrary to the integrity of the game."
They also fined him another US$25,000 in addition to last week's initial US$16,500 penalty for poor efforts, verbally abusing a fan and unsportsmanlike behavior.
Following the ban, Kyrgios released this statement:
"The season has been a long one as I battled several injuries and other challenges towards the end of the summer. The Asian circuit was particularly tough after the long week and win in Tokyo and with the travel throughout the continent, my body finally just gave out in Shanghai both physically and mentally. This is no excuse, and I know very well that I need to apologise to the fans – in Shanghai and in other parts of the world – as well as the tournament organisers in Shanghai who do an amazing job."
Kyrgios' eight-week suspension will last through January 15, 2017. But the ATP is giving Kyrgios the option to reduce the suspension to three tournament weeks if he agrees to enter a "plan of care under the direction of a sports psychologist."
[Image via NPR]
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