Nick Kyrgios – his emotional highs and lows…

By Jayita Belcourt
After a dramatic showdown at Melbourne Park on Friday night, where world no.29 Nick Kyrgios lost his 3rd round matchup 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 in 2hours and 27 minutes, much to the delight of his Czech opponent Thomas Berdych, the hype and banter hasn’t stopped in Australia.
Unfortunately, most of the attention isn’t good. However when it comes to Nick, it rarely is.
Google “Nick Kyrgios” and you’re likely to see a string of unflattering terms splattered next to his name. Things that have little to do with the actual game of tennis or his athletic ability – “crowd boo”, “lost temper”, “haters”, “abuse”, “dickhead” and the list goes on. Yes, the 20 year old from Canberra Australia has earned himself a reputation where we have come to expect a loud, brash and highly entertaining player. And where loud swearing, racket throwing and explosive tantrums have become the norm.
During his 2nd round matchup against unseeded Pablo Cuevas, Kyrgios could be heard yelling to his box “where are my f***ing shorts!?” Clearly frustrated with his current wardrobe selection, the feisty Australian proceeded to calm down following the arrival of his new pair of black shorts and went on to close 6-4, 7-5, 7-6(2). But despite the win, Kyrgios is acutely aware the impact these flare-outs may actually have on his performance.
“Yeah, it’s probably not the best thing playing angry. It does expend a lot of energy. In best-of-five tennis, you want to try to use not that much. You want to keep it all in the tank if you get that far,” Kyrgios said.
Realization or not, the on-court drama continued during his clash against world number 6 in the 3rd round, where it was all about the mystery music that seemed to be blaring from the stands. The situation yielded a sledge of angry exchanges with the umpire and booing from the crowd.
”Unless I’m hearing things. Yeah, I thought there was music playing. Did anyone else hear it in here?” Kyrgios asked the press in his post-match conference.
“He [the umpire] didn’t tell the crowd to quieten down if it was coming from the crowd, which I thing to do if you’re in the chair,” Kyrgios said.
“I don’t think he [the umpire] controlled the match well. He let a guy throw a ball back into play, which for me is pretty unprofessional. As I said previously, you know, music playing during points. First time I’ve ever seen it happen.”
Reasonable explanation don’t you think? To his credit, Kyrgios did put on an impressive display in the 3rd set taking it 6-1 where he dished out 9 aces and 13 total winners, showing the world what he is truly capable of when feeling inspired and in his comfort zone.
“I was having a lot of fun actually. I think from the start, it has to be like that. I maybe walked out there too serious. Maybe walked out there trying to focus too much on what I had to do. I probably should just go out there and try to enjoy myself, have fun, not take it so seriously,” Kyrgios revealed in reflection of the 3rd set.
“I thought I competed as well as I could. I was trying to make as many balls as I could.”
“I thought I put a lot of balls in the court when I needed to. I definitely hit a couple good shots. I thought they [my shots] were on at the time. Every time I went for a shot, I was in a tough position or something”.
So are we being too harsh on the young gun, focusing too much on his on-court antics, rather than his actual tennis ability? After all, he is only 20 years old and fires down some of the best serves on tour, and according to veteran Lleyton Hewitt, is playing some of the best tennis we’ve ever seen.
“I was very impressed with Nick,” Hewitt shared following Kyrgios’s 1st round win. “I thought he played great. First set was exceptional, and then how he closed out the match. He’s moving really well. Best I’ve seen him move ever. He’s confident. He’s in a good space at the moment”.
“He has to step it up against quality, high-seeded players,” Hewitt revealed.
Yes, surely he does. Whilst a 3rd round exit at the Australian Open doesn’t look so bad on the CV, it’s clearly not where Nick was hoping to be. Following his loss he said “I’m so disappointed, like I put so much work in, and I just feel like I let a lot of people down”. “I was expecting a bit more out of myself. I was expecting like another real deep run. I put a lot of work in. It’s pretty heartbreaking.”
Heartbreaks aside, can the freakishly gifted 20 year old find that perfect balance between entertaining and competing, having fun and working hard, being focused whilst staying relaxed? All the while winning the heart and support of the crowd?
Without a full-time coach to guide and mentor the youngster, it’s a tall order. There has been much speculation about Hewitt taking on a more dominant role in Kyrgios’ camp following his retirement, but as yet Kyrgios remains elusive about the prospect of any new guiding realms. “I haven’t really thought too much about it. I’m not really looking. I am but I’m not. I think I’m pretty content at the moment,” Kyrgios muttered following his bow-out on Friday night.
And as he enters uncharted ground in 2016, one thing is for sure. This will be one captivating show to watch. (Jayita Belcourt is our Australian-based correspondent)