"A disgrace, shows the utter contempt towards women" - BBC hiring Nick Kyrgios as commentator for Wimbledon receives backlash from British politician
The BBC confirmed recently that Nick Kyrgios would join their commentary team at the Wimbledon Championship this year. The broadcasting company faced criticism from British MP Caroline Nokes following the decision, as she recalled past allegations associated with the Australian.
Nick Kyrgios pleaded guilty on February 3, 2023, for assaulting his ex-girlfriend. The Aussie accepted the allegations of assaulting Chiara Passari on January 10, 2021, when he appeared in a Canberra court. However, Kyrgios avoided the verdict as the magistrate dismissed the charges calling it a " single act of stupidity".
British MP, Caroline Nokes, was left fuming as she recently asked the BBC to hang their heads in shame. Nokes also accused the BBC of not equally paying the female staff and highlighted the past allegations associated with Kyrgios.
"The BBC should hang its head in shame at this appointment. It’s a disgrace and shows the utter contempt our national broadcaster has towards women." Nokes told The Telegraph recently.
Nokes further stated that the company removes female staff once they reach a certain age. She concluded her remarks by accusing Kyrgios.
"Not content with consistently underpaying their own female staff and forcing out women once they hit a certain age, they now bring a man who admitted assaulting a woman on board for Wimbledon.”
The former Wimbledon finalist has been away from action for almost 21 months. He has only played one match since 2022 as he had to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.
Nick Kyrgios has started practicing on the court
Nick Kyrgios shared a positive update with fans in a recent question-and-answer session on Instagram. He confirmed that he has started practicing on the court and that he could see improvements in his forehand.
"Yes. I'm back on court. Forehand is nearing-serving introduced in a month,"
The Australian tennis player revealed a few months ago that he was thinking of retiring. He told the Sydney Morning Herald that he won't appear in the Paris Olympics either.
"I’m contemplating retirement and won’t be available for the Paris Olympics."
The 29-year-old played at the Stuttgart Open in 2023 after the knee injury but lost to Yibing Wu. Kyrgios later confirmed his participation in that year's Wimbledon Championship but was unexpectedly forced to withdraw due to a wrist injury.