Nick Kyrgios could face four-week ban following fine at Shanghai Masters
Nick Kyrgios stands chance of facing a four-week ban if he amasses a total of $5,000 in fines before February, per BBC. The Australian edged closer to the target after he received a $1,500 fine in the Shanghai Masters for his ill-mannered outburst.
He reportedly called the tournament a circus and was seen complaining at the ball boys during the match against Andreas Haider-Maurer, which he ended up winning.
According to the Guardian, the 20-year-old reportedly said the following when his compatriot Bernard Tomic arrived, “Mate, it’s an absolute circus. Cameraman’s been talking in the middle of a point ... Ball-kids ... It’s just unbelievable. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
he was also seen remarking the surface saying, "You're not going to see Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal playing on a court like that. They're always playing on centre court where things usually go pretty smoothly."
Alternate ban for Kyrgios
Kyrgios though might end up triggering a different ban if he lets his tongue slip one more time. He will receive a one month ban, if he receives another fine for verbal or physical misconduct, and it seems highly likely as he has two code violations this week and a penalty from the Stan Wawrinka incident.
In the incident, The Australian took a jab at his opponent Stan Wawrinka in a match that took place in August, where he reportedly claimed that his fellow countryman Thanasi Kokkinakis had already done the deeds with his 19-year old girlfriend Vekic.
While it the ban seems eminent considering the players past behavior, Kokkinakis feels that the player has toned downed his outbursts in recent times.
“To be fair I’ve been watching him and he’s playing well and he’s probably a bit more switched on then I’ve seen him before,” Kokkinakis said. “He’s not going to change completely and not not get frustrated. But he’s toning it down a bit.”
Even when Kyrgios is not playing tennis he manages to find a way to entertain the fans. Him and his doubles partner Bernard Tomic were seen playing rock-paper-scissors to decide who would receive during a sudden-death point during a medical time.
The duo though went on to beat Vasek Pospisil and Jack Sock 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 to progress to the second round in the tournament.
The youngster will also have to face Japan's Kei Nishikori in the second round of the singles competition on Wednesday.