Nick Kyrgios has let Wimbledon chiefs know he's not a happy man after the Australian missed out on qualification for the ATP Final singles event.
Kyrgios has secured a spot at the season finale in the doubles draw, but has missed out on the singles event after finishing the campaign ranked 22nd. This comes after the Australian star progressed to his first ever Grand Slam singles final - reaching the last two at Wimbledon in the summer.
Kyrgios then fell at the final hurdle, losing to Novak Djokovic 4–6, 6–3, 6–4, 7–6. Despite his impressive stay at SW19, the 27-year-old's efforts were not recognised in the world rankings, after the event went ahead without ranking points.
This came after the All England Club were punished, after deciding to not let Russian and Belarusian players compete due to Vladimir Putin's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine. If points were on offer Kyrgios' ranking would no doubt have seen a considerable rise with 1200 points usually handed out.
However, the sanctioning saw the Aussie miss out and he is now feeling the repercussions later down the line. To make matters worse for Kyrgios, his final opponent Djokovic was handed a place at the season finale for being a Grand Slam winner.
Of course the 27-year-old's season is not yet over, having qualified for the doubles event alongside partner Thanasi Kokkinakis. However, Kyrgios could not help but reference his disappointment regarding the lack of points at SW19 post qualification.
Posting on Instagram he said: "Should of been in singles as well... (but) no points at Wimbledon. First time in 53 years but we won’t speak of that.” And it seems there are financial implications to his Finals near miss too.
Do you think Nick Kyrgios deserves a spot at the singles finale? Let us know in the comments section.
And Kyrgios' agent Stuart Duguid has hit out at his player's misfortune.. He told the Daily Mail : “First and foremost, Novak deserves to be in Turin.
"But it feels arbitrary that he is the only player to benefit from his performances at Wimbledon. Players’ endorsement contracts are affected by their year-end ranking and whether or not they qualify for the Finals. Many, such as Nick, will be out of pocket, whereas Novak has been made whole.”
An ATP spokesman said on the matter: "The removal of ranking points at this year's Wimbledon was done on the basis of fairness to all players, and no further rule changes linked to the competition's status were deemed necessary.
"As such, any player competing at Wimbledon or the other Grand Slams this year had the opportunity to qualify for Turin via the Grand Slam qualification rule."
