April 01, (THEWILL) – The ATP has fined Nick Kyrgios $35,000 (£26,640) for four distinct offences committed during his Miami Open loss to Jannik Sinner.
Three $5,000 fines were levied on the Australian, one for audible obscenity and two for unsportsmanlike behaviour, plus a $20,000 fine for verbal abuse.
During his straight-sets loss to Sinner, Kyrgios, who earned $94,575 for reaching the final 16, lost his cool with chair umpire Carlos Bernardes. At the beginning, it appeared that the volume of Bernardes’ walkie-talkie near the end of the first set irked the world number 102.
Unable to take it quietly, he screamed at Bernardes as he sat down in his chair: “Unbelievable! It’s the fourth round at Miami – one of the biggest tournaments – and you guys can’t do your jobs. It’s embarrassing!”
He added: “He should be fired on the spot. Get a new set of referees, these guys don’t know how to do s***. It’s a joke. Get rid of every single staff and start over. Everything. I will run the sport. I could do a 100 times better job. Marketing. Everything. You guys have no idea. None. You guys can’t even ref right.”
Kyrgios smashed his racket in the first-set tie-break, prompting Bernardes to impose a point penalty, leaving him down 6-3; a double fault then handed Sinner the first set.
“I didn’t say anything,” screamed Kyrgios before repeating: “What’s unsportsmanlike about it…? I was talking to my friend… get me someone now!”
Bernardes tried to defuse the tension by saying, “Just play,” but Kyrgios shattered another racket and was given a game penalty.
Kyrgios had already expressed his dissatisfaction with the speed of the courts, saying in one of his numerous monologues throughout the match that: “It is a completely different situation. Do you think anybody will notify the players before the event that it is absolutely different or that ‘hey guys, just to let you know, centre court is completely different from the Grandstand for some strange reason’? It may just as well be grass and clay. What a farce.”
In a series of tweets following the match, Kyrgios reaffirmed his position. He stated: “I am aiming all of this at an umpire who clearly ISN’T GOOD ENOUGH to be doing these matches. Nothing but a slap on the wrist for him right? What a joke.”
Sinner, who won 7-6(3) 6-3, scarcely spoke during the match but expressed himself after saying: “I just tried to stay in the present moment. I know that he can raise his level immediately, especially when he breaks. At 4-3 (in the second set) if I serve worse there, he can get back into the match. I tried to stay calm somehow and think I’ve done a great job today.
“Today, I raised my level a bit. I tried to play a bit more aggressively. The conditions are a bit easier, it’s not as windy. I tried to stay close to the lines. I also served well in important moments. It can give me a lot of confidence for the next round.”
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
