A car owned by Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios was involved in a crash in the ACT over the weekend in the suburb of Bonner.
The car lost control before his $300,000 black Dodge Demon slamming into a power pole with images obtained by The Daily Telegraph showing Kyrgios talking to police officers.
Kyrgios has split fan opinions over the years for his on court antics, but following the crash he received a truly awful message on social media.
The mercurial star shared the message on his Instagram account with the caption “Cheers bro, honestly why I’ve lost a little faith in humanity”.
Kyrgios on court behaviour has seen him become an easy target for many Aussies, with heavy backlash coming any time he seems to step onto the court.
He had a wild time throughout 2019 that showcased his best and worst.
It culminated at the Cincinnati Masters where Kyrgios lost during the second round against Russian Karen Khachanov but exploded, calling umpire Fergus Murphy “a f***ing tool” and a “potato” among a volley of abuse throughout the game as well as appearing to spit in his direction at the end of the match.
Kyrgios then accused the governing body for men’s tennis, the ATP, of being “pretty corrupt” after his first-round win at the US Open when asked about his record $A167,000 fine for the outburst earlier in the month.
Kyrgios later said it was “not the correct choice of words” before highlighting what he felt were double standards in the game.
He was deemed guilty of aggravated behaviour under the player major offence provision in the ATP Code.
If he breaches the probation, he will be fined US$25,000 and suspended for 16 weeks.
“Everyone. I can still play, I’m just on probation, relax,” Kyrgios wrote in a message posted to his Instagram account. “I’ll be playing and tennis will still be fun it’s ok. I just have to keep a lid on my behaviour that’s all.”
“Live and die by the sword,” he added in a comment on another post. “I’ll take probo.”
As part of the probation, Kyrgios has to agree to certain conditions.
These include no further code violations which would result in a fine, which includes:
— Verbal or physical abuse of officials, spectators or any other persons while on-court or on-site.
— Unsportsmanlike conduct based upon an act, such as spitting, directed towards an official, spectator or other person during or upon conclusion of the match.
— Visible obscenity directed towards an official.
He also has to get “continued support from a mental coach” during ATP Tour events as well as additional support during the off-season — between November and December — with a “professional specialising in behavioural management”.
The start of the probation period coincided with a collarbone injury with Kyrgios is expected to be out of tournament play for much of the current ATP Asian swing.