Kyrgios has last laugh as Djokovic clash sells out stadium in minutes

Nick Kyrgios took a cheeky dig at his critics after tickets for Friday’s practice match with Serb Novak Djokovic sold out in 58 minutes, proving the Australian’s huge box office draw.

Nick Kyrgios.
Photo: GLYN KIRK

Kyrgios had pulled out of the United Cup with an injury just minutes before his pre-tournament press conference, drawing the ire of Australian co-captain Lleyton Hewitt, his team mates and the media.

The 27-year-old has not played since October and an ankle injury forced him to skip warm-up tournaments in Adelaide as well, before Djokovic offered to play him in a practice match that will be played at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena.

“Wow Nick Kyrgios is bad for the sport! Wow what a disgrace, a national embarrassment! How dare he sell out another stadium, the arrogance,” Kyrgios said in a sarcastic tweet on Tuesday.

Former American player Noah Rubin questioned the timing of the exhibition match just before a Grand Slam to which Kyrgios responded: “Well to be fair it will bring more crowd than any of your matches.”

Tickets for the match, a repeat of last year’s Wimbledon final, were priced at A$20 each with the proceeds going to the Australian Tennis Foundation.

The Australian Open begins on Monday. (Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Nick Macfie)