NICK SLAMS ‘DOUGHNUT’ BECKER IN COVID SPAT
DAY two of phantom Wimbledon brought with it a hard-fought five-set match between Nick Kyrgios and Boris Becker. Instead of Centre Court, the more intimidating bear pit of Twitter was the venue, with the German legend and the Australian player slugging it out. Once again the catalyst was the conduct of the Adria Tour. The fallout continues to provide as much controversy as any number of code violations that might have been dished out this fortnight. The build-up to the clash involved Kyrgios’s outspoken attack on Alex Zverev. At the weekend, the world No7 was pictured partying at a crowded restaurant on the Cote D’Azur when he had pledged to self-isolate after playing in Novak Djokovic’s ill-fated Balkan exhibition series. Becker struck the first blow when he accused Kyrgios of being a ‘rat’ for turning on fellow professionals. ‘Don’t like no #rats,’ tweeted Becker. ‘Anybody telling off fellow sportsman/woman is no friend of mine! Look yourself in the mirror and think your better than us...’ Outspoken Kyrgios was quick to return serve: ‘For goodness sake Boris I’m not competing or trying to throw anyone under the bus. It’s a global pandemic and if someone is as idiotic as Alex to do what he has done I’ll call him out for it simple.’ Back and forth they went, with the 25-year-old calling Becker a ‘doughnut’ at one point. Unlike a tennis match it ended with honours about even and no clear winner. The exchange offered a window on the splits in the game, with various alliances in play. Becker certainly feels loyalty to Djokovic and Zverev, who have felt the sharp end of Kyrgios’s tongue recently. Three-time Wimbledon champion Becker is a former coach of Djokovic and was in his corner for some of his big triumphs. Becker also serves as head of men’s tennis for the German federation and unsurprisingly wishes to defend his No 1 player, Zverev. As yet, Zverev has issued no apology for breaking his self-imposed isolation after testing negative.