He’s known for his on-court outbursts and controversial attitude, but Nick Kyrgios showed a rare softer side as he rushed to comfort a ball girl he left in tears of pain in his latest match at Wimbledon.
The Aussie tennis pro was forced to pause his epic four-set win over Denis Istomin when he accidentally hit the young girl in the arm with one of his most powerful serves, measuring at a reported speed of 223kmph (138mph).
Rather than continuing to play, the 23-year-old put him arm round the distraught girl and helped to lead her away for medical help, while apologising for the unfortunate accident. His Uzbekistani competitor also comforted the girl and held his arm round her during the brief break from play.
While she clutched her arm in agony, the girl appeared to be okay as she was led away. Kyrgios went on to win 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4), 6-7 (5), 6-3.
Speaking after the match, Kyrgios admitted he heard the sound of the ball and assumed it had hit the scoreboard, before realising it had actually flown straight into the girl.
“Then I realised it was her arm. It was tough. She started crying. It was tough. She took it like a champ, though. I would have been crying, for sure,” he added.
Speaking to reporters afterwards, the tennis pros said he’s remaining positive for the tournament, despite having a mental “tug of war” with himself on the court.
He added: “I feel like I’m playing well. I mean, I have a different approach. I feel like I’m one of the guys that can cause a bit of an uproar at this event. We’ll see how it goes.”
It comes after a series of scandals for the sportsman, who just weeks ago came under fire for a series of expletive-ridden rants at Queen’s Club in London. Kyrgios has made a name for himself as a ‘tantrum thrower’ over the years, and is regularly caught up in backlash over his on-camera antics.
Kyrgios said he “didn’t care” the BBC, who was broadcasting the match live, had to repeatedly apologise for his bad language during the heated match.
The tennis ace fired 32 aces in a triumph over Britain’s Kyle Edmund, but as he battled it out on the grass court, he was heard swearing at his player’s box in frustration.
When he was later informed at his post-match press conference that the BBC had to apologise on-air for his language, an unfazed Kyrgios said: “Fine. I don’t care,” the ABC reported.
He then asked a reporter who pressed him on the outburst: “No, do you swear? Yes or no? Yes or no? Do you swear? Do you swear?”
Despite his hot temper through the years, tennis pros agree that Kyrgios is one of the best natural talents Australia has ever seen and that if he learns to control his mental game, he could be one of the greats.
Kyrgios previously pulled out of an opening round at the Shanghai Masters, with many calling for the player to be suspended from the game. He was fined $10,000 for walking off the court during the game and stripped of the $21,085 be was meant to earn in prize money.
Just a year earlier at the same event, Kyrgios was also fined and suspended for abusing a spectator and for purposely throwing a match.