Stefanos Tsitsipas called Nick Kyrgios a bully after losing to him in an ill-tempered third round clash at Wimbledon on Saturday.
“It’s constant bullying, that’s what he does,” the Greek fourth seed said after going down 7-6, 4-6, 3-6, 6-7 (7).
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“He bullies the opponents. He was probably a bully at school himself. I don’t like bullies,” Tsitsipas added.
Stefanos Tsitsipas received a warning for smacking the ball into the crowd… but Nick Kyrgios says he should've been defaulted 😳
This is what happened 👇
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“He has some good traits in his character, as well.
“But… he also has a very evil side to him, which if it’s exposed, it can really do a lot of harm and bad to the people around him.”
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The mercurial Australian prevailed in a match where both players were handed code violations by the umpire.
Kyrgios even demanded the Tsitsipas be defaulted for hitting the ball into the crowd.
Tsitsipas admitted he deliberately hit the ball at Kyrgios at one stage in an effort to quieten the Australian.
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“I was aiming for the body of my opponent but I missed by a lot,” he said.
“It felt like a bit of a circus. You get tired of the constant talking, the constant complaining,” he added.
‘He’s soft’
Kyrgios, in his own press conference, said he understood why Tsitsipas would be upset after losing two times in recent weeks, including in Halle.
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“Maybe he should figure out how to beat me a couple more times first and then get to that,” he said.
“I did nothing towards Stefanos today that was disrespectful.
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“He’s soft to come in here and say I bullied him. We’re not cut from the same cloth. If he’s affected by that, then that’s what’s holding him back.”
Kyrgios, who received an obscenity warning, did not lose his serve in the entire match, saving all five break points he faced and winning 81 percent of his first-serve points.
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He will face Brandon Nakashima in the Round of 16 on Monday.
