Nick Kyrgios has launched another outburst in the direction of the chair umpire. The Australian was fined a total of £26,500 for his tirades in Indian Wells and Miami last month, and he flew off the handle once again during the US Clay Court Championship in Houston this past weekend.
While competing against home favourite Reilly Opelka in the semi-final, the 26-year-old was spouting obscenities and arguing with official Joshua Brace. After yelling more foul language, the big server was penalised a point late in the second set.
A flustered Brace admitted he had made a mistake with a call at 5-5 in the second set. But with the score locked at 5-5, 30-30, Kyrgios lost the plot. He lost the next point with a distracted error, after earning his second warning for more on-court swearing, getting docked the point which cost him the game at break point down.
"What do you mean, you don't know from there? Where are you supposed to see it from?" he yelled at Brace. "It was out, bro! He wins that point when the ball was out. What are you guys actually doing out here?"
As he walked back to his seat for the changeover, Kyrgios shouted: “F***!” He continued to harass the official, muttering: “F***** out! How are you not calling it? It’s an absolute joke.”
During another changeover, Kyrgios could be heard saying to himself: “F***** energy is useless this morning! Useless!” Opelka kept his cool to serve out the match 6-3, 7-5 in 69 minutes and went on to defeat John Isner in the final.
Once the contest concluded, Kyrgios still couldn’t let it go. “Do you feel bad?” he asked Brace. “I don’t think you feel bad.” In the aftermath of yet another outburst, Kyrgios revealed he had received death threats from trolls warning him he was "f***** dead" and to "watch his back" and others urged him to "quit tennis."
Despite another temper tantrum, the tournament was a promising one for the Aussie, who notched his first wins on the clay since 2019. He continued his impressive start to the year which has seen him rise to number 77 in the world.
Kyrgios also reached the quarter-finals of the doubles event with Jack Sock, losing 6-4, 6-2 to Serbian sibling duo of Ivan and Matej Sabanov. Speaking of clay, he announced last week he will play the French Open next year in what will be his first appearance in the grand slam since 2016.
