Nick Kyrgios has been accused of tanking during his fourth round loss to Richard Gasquet – appearing to some to give up a game after a heated exchange with the umpire.
The 20-year-old received a code violation for swearing in the second game of the second set and then then lost the very next game to love in a bizarre performance.
Kyrgios failed to return Gasquet’s serve, being aced once down the T and then meekly chipping two balls into the net.
The young Australian’s behaviour drew the ire of portions of the Wimbledon crowd who booed him after the game.
In the press conference though, Kyrgios was steadfast in the face of a barrage of tanking accusations from journalists.
“I kept playing,” Kyrgios said.
“Do you want to try to return Richard Gasquet’s serve? I’ll give you the racquet and we’ll see how many times you can return his serve also. Okay. He served too good.”
“He hit serve past me as an ace. That’s too good. That’s too good … I did move.”
A Wimbledon mediator had to intervene as journalists were relentless with their line of questioning
“And that’s coming from you? That’s your opinion. Just frustration. I mean, it’s tough out there. You know, I don’t really know what else to say.”
“You know, I’m not perfect out there. I’m going to have ups and downs. That’s the way you respond from that. I think it takes some serious balls to respond the way I did.”
Kyrgios lost the second, but responded in spirited fashion in the third set, saving two match points and winning the tiebreaker to send the match into a fourth.
His serve abandoned him when he needed it most though in the next set, squandering two set points during another tiebreaker to be knocked out of the Grand Slam.
ATP regulations state that “a player shall use his best efforts to win a match when competing in a grand slam tournament” and violation of this section shall subject a player to a fine up to $20,000 (US dollars) for each violation.”
It’s not known yet whether or not Kyrgios will face a penalty for the allegations.
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