"I was sick, I was feeling terrible" - Stefanos Tsitsipas revisits controversial Nick Kyrgios clash at Wimbledon

Stefanos Tsitsipas has revisited his controversial 2022 Wimbledon encounter against Nick Kyrgios. The Greek had a meltdown on court as Kyrgios managed to get under his skin with several questionable acts.

The Australian ultimately won the fiercely-contested third-round matchup, eventually finishing the tournament as the runner-up after losing to Novak Djokovic in the final. Relations between Tsitsipas and Kyrgios soured temporarily in the aftermath of the match.

The contest looked to be headed in Tsitsipas' favor after the Greek clinched the first set 7-6(2). However, Kyrgios unleashed a series of on-court antics that included asking the chair umpire to default Tsitsipas, getting frequent treatments for an apparently-injured serving shoulder, and repeatedly putting his towel in the Greek's box. The Australian's acts resulted in Tsitsipas imploding, and Kyrgios capitalized on the moment to win the next three sets 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(7).

Recently, Tsitsipas reflected on the match in an interview with Express Sport. The former World No. 3 said that he went into the clash against Kyrgios in high spirits, owing to his win over Jordan Thompson, another Australian, in the second round.

"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," Tsitsipas told Express Sport.

The Greek went on to look back on how he was thrown off by Kyrgios' actions, labeling them as the "worst sort of behavior". Tsitsipas also revealed that he was somewhat unwell at the time, which also played a part in his implosion.

"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. 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," Tsitsipas added.

"I would describe it as an uneducated approach of playing tennis" - Stefanos Tsitsipas on Nick Kyrgios' methods during controversial 2022 Wimbledon encounter

Stefanos Tsitsipas

Tsitsipas and Kyrgios' heated 2022 Wimbledon meeting was one of the focus areas of Netflix's tennis docuseries Break Point. During the episode that shed light on the controversial encounter, the Greek blatantly criticized the Australian's "approach" to playing tennis. According to Tsitsipas, Kyrgios showed no respect towards him, which "annoyed" him.

"He has brought that NBA basketball attitude to tennis - I would describe it as an uneducated approach of playing tennis. But you know tennis is a gentleman’s sport, it’s all about respect. We are not playing basketball. I feel he was trying to destroy my rhythm. He kept putting his towel in my box. There was zero respect coming out of my opponent that day. He kept pressing my buttons non-stop – and of course I got annoyed," Tsitsipas said.

Tsitsipas later extended an apology to Kyrgios after facing widespread condemnation for his choice of words. The Australian also responded to the Greek eventually as they seemingly buried the hatchet and moved on from their spat.

Right now, Tsitsipas is preparing to start his 2024 Wimbledon campaign. The No. 11 seed is slated to face Taro Daniel on Tuesday, July 2. Kyrgios, meanwhile, continues to work his way back to fitness after a lengthy spell on the sidelines due to a wrist surgery.