Tennis News: Tickets for Friday’s practice match with Serb Novak Djokovic sold out in 58 minutes, demonstrating the Australian’s enormous box office attraction, and Nick Kyrgios responded by making fun of his detractors.
Just minutes before his pre-tournament press conference, Kyrgios withdrew from the United Cup due to an injury, angering Australian co-captain Lleyton Hewitt, his teammates, and the media.
Before Djokovic offered to play him in a practice match that would be played at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena, the 27-year-old had not played since October and had to withdraw from warm-up tournaments in Adelaide due to an ankle injury.
“Oh my goodness, Nick Kyrgios is horrible for sports! What a shame and a national disgrace! How conceited of him to sell out another arena,” On Tuesday, Kyrgios posted a snarky tweet.
Wow Nick Kyrgios is bad for the sport! Wow what a disgrace, a national embarrassment! How dare he sell out another stadium, the arrogance https://t.co/Sn37U2nAjv
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) January 10, 2023
The timing of the exhibition match right before a Grand Slam was questioned by a former American player named Noah Rubin, to which Kyrgios said, “Well, to be honest, it will draw more crowd than any of your matches.”
The event, which was a rematch of the Wimbledon final from the previous year, cost A$20 (about £11) per ticket, with all earnings going to the Australian Tennis Foundation.
In Melbourne, Djokovic is aiming for a record-breaking 10th victory.
Before Friday’s match between Djokovic and Kyrgios, players including Rafael Nadal, Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, Maria Sakkari, Jessica Pegula, Stan Wawrinka, Dominic Thiem, and Alexander Zverev participated in practice matches this week.
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