Two years after their fiery Wimbledon clash, Stefanos Tsitsipas reflects on the "terrible" experience while maintaining he has "no regrets."
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revisited his explosive third-round match against Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon in 2022. The match, which saw both players receive code violations, ultimately ended in a four-set victory for Kyrgios, who went on to reach the final.
The tension spilled over into the post-match press conferences, with Tsitsipas labeling Kyrgios a “bully” and Kyrgios claiming the Greek star wasn't well-liked. Speaking exclusively to Express Sport, Tsitsipas revealed he has no regrets about the match, despite calling out Kyrgios for displaying the “worst behaviour” on court.
“Look, for me that year was an important one. I felt like my tennis was great during that grass court swing,” Tsitsipas told Express Sport. “If you check my results I might not have delivered in Halle two weeks before but I won my first grass court tournament in Mallorca and I was feeling great with my game."
He entered the match against Kyrgios with high expectations. “I had a great win in the second round against Jordan Thompson, I feel like he’s one of the good guys to beat on grass. And then I entered that match with Kyrgios with a lot of expectations that I can really do damage today and I can perhaps even win that match.”
However, the match took a turn after Tsitsipas, the fourth seed at Wimbledon that year, took the first set in a tiebreak. After losing the second set, Tsitsipas hit a ball into the crowd in frustration, leading to Kyrgios demanding his default.
Recalling the heated encounter, Tsitsipas admitted, “And those things occurred during the match, they threw me off a little bit. It was, let’s say, the best moment of my career with the worst sort of behaviour on the other side which made me feel terrible."
He also revealed he wasn't at his physical best: "I was also feeling a little bit sick during those three days that I was at Wimbledon, I started feeling not that great so that contributed to the behaviour and the reaction that I showed on the court, I was really feeling terrible.”
Despite the controversy, Tsitsipas stands by his actions, seeing the experience as a valuable lesson. “Looking back into it, I don’t regret anything,” he stated. “Two years on, the match taught me a lot about what to do on the court."
While their relationship remains strained, the Wimbledon showdown serves as a reminder of the fiery personalities and captivating drama that Kyrgios and Tsitsipas bring to the world of tennis.
