Kyrgios, against a Spanish chair umpire: “I have lost a lot of money for these wretches”

Nick Kyrgios took very little time to star in the first incident on a tennis court after spending almost a year without playing. The Australian mounted a good number in his match of the second round of the Murray River Open, one of the tournaments that takes place these days in Melbourne Park. The wayward 25-year-old tennis player and 47th in the world stopped playing when in the tenth of the second set against his compatriot and friend Harry Bourchier, the Spanish chair judge Nacho Forcadell pointed out a rigorous time violation. The clock that marks the 24-second limit to serve reached 0 just when the tennis player started “the service movement”, as he himself claimed.

Angry, Kyrgios told Forcadell if he thought what he had done was “funny” (“You seem to do it to be fun”) and requested the presence of the tournament supervisor to discuss with him the referee's decision, which carries a financial fine. Meanwhile, among other things, the Aussie belittled the Spaniard: “You think this is about the chair judges. And you are extras for us.”

Kyrgios, who apologized to his partner, asked the supervisor to cancel the warning, although he did not do so and said that he would stay on the court to see if something similar happened again. “I have to go back and forth to get the towel. Why don't these guys think I'm slow because of that?” And when he finally decided to play again, he chatted with his rival. “I wanted to discuss it now because I've already lost enough money to these wretches,” he said, pointing at Forcadell. It is unknown if Kyrgios' actions will have disciplinary consequences.