[ad_1]
Nick Kyrgios hit back at Novak Djokovic by reserving his place in the second round of the Australian Open after the world No.1 publicly said he had no respect for the Australian.
On the eve of the Grand Slam, Djokovic rekindled his feud with Kyrgios when he told reporters that “off the pitch I don’t have a lot of respect for him”.
It came after Kyrgios called the Serbian a “tool” to send a list of requests to Tennis Australia for players in quarantine, in what was only the latest chapter in the long war of words between the two.
Asked by reporters on Monday night about Djokovic’s eleventh hour offense, a visibly relaxed Kyrgios laughed and said “let’s go” before launching a frigid withdrawal for the eight-time Australian Open champion.
“It’s strange to me,” he said.
“I read his comments. He said he didn’t respect me off the pitch. I’m like, it would really make sense to me if he said, ‘I don’t respect the guy on the pitch’ , because I understand if he doesn’t agree with some of my field antics that I’ve done in the past.
“(But) when we played games, I think I was pretty good with him. I’m not sure how you can’t respect me off the pitch.
“I feel like I handled things really well, especially during the pandemic, I was driving to deliver food to people during the pandemic who couldn’t get supplies.
“I was extremely careful in what I did – I didn’t want to pass the virus on to anyone. Now I’m actually trying to give meal kits to people who need food. I have a foundation.
“So it’s very strange to me why he would say he doesn’t respect me off the pitch – I do a lot of things off the pitch.
“But he’s a very strange cat, Novak is. One hell of a tennis player, but sadly someone partying with his shirt on during a global pandemic, I’m not sure if I can take a release from this man. It’s as bad as it suits me. “
During a heavily disrupted season last year, Kyrgios established himself as a “moral” voice within the tennis community, holding his professional colleagues accountable for their behavior during the pandemic, including Djokovic, who organized the controversial Adria Tour in June.
A host of stars, including Djokovic himself, tested positive for COVID-19 after participating in the tournament, which drew large crowds and had limited social distancing.
Kyrgios criticized the event at the time and says it’s important for him to speak up, especially when it comes to someone of Djokovic’s stature, who later apologized for hosting the Adria Tour event last year.
[ad_2]
