Bernard Tomic claims he is better than prime Nick Kyrgios, Kyrgios points out he has more titles & Big 3 wins than Tomic
Bernard Tomic recently claimed to be a better player than his countryman, Nick Kyrgios, during an Instagram Q&A session. Not one to stay quiet, Kyrgios responded in style, pointing out how Tomic has fewer titles than him along with no wins over Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Tomic has four ATP titles to his name, all of which are from the 250 category. Kyrgios, on the other hand, has six titles, out of which three are in the ATP 500 category.
Kyrgios has also been the runner-up in an ATP Masters 1000 event, in addition to being a two-time Slam quarterfinalist. Bernard Tomic has never progressed beyond the last eight at an ATP Masters 1000 tournament and has made the quarterfinals of a Major on only one occasion.
However, when Tomic was recently asked if he considers himself to be better than Kyrgios, he answered in the affirmative, pointing out how easily he beat him in an exhibition match.
“Yeah, obviously Nick’s a good player, I mean top 6, 7 servers in the world," Bernard Tomic said. "But I obviously beat him in Kooyong 6-3, 6-4, a couple years back. And you know just cuz I train with him, I sort of pock where he's serving, I sort of know where he's at. So, that sort of style doesn't really bother me."
Tomic here is referring to the 2019 Kooyong Classic exhibition match between himself and Kyrgios. The two have never faced each other in a competitive match on the ATP tour.
THIS match point by Bernard Tomic in Kooyong 😱😵😭 https://t.co/BhoFTMH3Gc
When a fan questioned Tomic if he was better than Kyrgios in his prime, the 29-year-old replied, "I still am."
Nick Kyrgios took to Instagram a few hours later, posting a series of stories in reply to Tomic's claims.
"Hey guys, I'm just you know, setting my story here - obviously getting tagged in a lot of comments via BT - Bernard Tomic's Instagram story of the question - is Nick Kyrgios better than you at tennis," began Kyrgios.
The 26-year-old subtly suggested that his defeat to Tomic at Kooyong should not matter, given it was an exhibition match.
"And his response was he played me once in Kooyong, Kooyong Classic, the exhibition there - where people play exhibitions," Kyrgios went on.
The World No. 93 was also quick to underline that he has more titles than his compatriot while also having scored wins over Federer, Djokovic, and Nadal - something the World No. 259 has never managed.
"And yes he did beat me there once, but to say that he is better, I have more titles," Kyrgios pointed out. "I don't think he's got any sort of big scalps to his name, no Rafa, no Federer, no Djokovic."
In addition to being one of the very few players to have a 100% record against Novak Djokovic (2-0), Kyrgios has also beaten Federer once and Nadal thrice.
On the other hand, Bernard Tomic has faced Djokovic, Federer and Nadal a combined 13 times on tour but is yet to upset any of the greats.
Also, while Tomic could manage a career-high ranking of 17, Kyrgios' highest ranking remains 13th.
"To say that he's better than me, that's bit of a stretch" - Nick Kyrgios
In one of his concluding statements, Nick Kyrgios indicated that he considers Bernard Tomic a notch or two below him. However, he also claimed that he wishes his countryman success, given that he is not a "jealous person."
"So to say that he's better than me, that's bit of a stretch but we all know what BT is capable of," Kyrgios said. "I wish him the best. I am no jealous person, I want success for everyone. So BT, we know what you’re capable of brother. Let’s see it, good luck man.”
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