'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABkAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACAkQAAEEAgEFAAAAAAAAAAAAAAECAwQFAAYSBwgRMkEBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIFEQACAQMFAQAAAAAAAAAAAAABAhEABCEDEyKBkbH/2gAMAwEAAhEDEQA/AJi2V6BSVGubHUVsWvlzNXiMSW2E8WlgklagPYKWBxJJJ8Zoto3a30us9K1ua7DWFyqeC8sD4XGUqxjHqjbeFxyYeAR9qlcopt0aMkKeyWB9gV//2Q=='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Team Eagles' Nick Kyrgios lost 7-5, 6-3 to Team Kites' Felix Auger-Aliassime on Monday and invited a little bit of criticism for his defensive tweet after he came to know that Iga Swiatek had tipped her teammate Auger-Aliassime to win.
The inaugural edition of the World Tennis League kicked off at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai yesterday, with Kyrgios and Bianca Andreescu winning the first match 6-2 6-3 against Holger Rune and Eugenie Bouchard. World No. 1 Swiatek beat Caroline Garcia 6-3, 6-4 to bring the Kites back into the competition.
When the Pole was asked who she thought was going to win between Kyrgios and Auger-Aliassime, she went with the Canadian.
Trending
"I think Felix is the one who is more solid, so he got this," Swiatek said.
Kyrgios' loss meant the Kites beat the Eagles 35-27. Reacting to Swiatek's comments on social media, the 22nd-ranked Australian stated that he arrived in Dubai not long before the matches.
"I also got off a flight from Australia yesterday morning," Kyrgios tweeted.
Tennis fans were angered by the 27-year-old's need to respond to Swiatek's comments as they accused him of finding excuses for his loss against Auger-Aliassime.
"Apart from everything, did he really think she wouldn't choose her TEAMMATE? This is a team competition after all. Also, I guess she is not that irrelevant if her opinion mattered enough that he felt the need to respond," a fan tweeted.
"And she got off a flight from Ostrava to San Diego and she won the whole thing. Your point?" a user wrote.
"Nick telling us he doesn't take tennis seriously. We know not taking tennis seriously is your brand. A lot of us are here for it....sometimes," another tweet read.
Here are a few more fan reactions:
"Hopefully I can just win a Slam and retire" - Nick Kyrgios
Nick Kyrgios enjoyed an incredible 2022 season, winning three doubles and a singles title. But more importantly, he reached his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon, where he lost to Novak Djokovic in four sets.
In an interview during the World Tennis League on Monday, the Aussie joked that he might retire from professional tennis if he wins a Major in 2023.
"Hopefully I can just win a Slam and retire. Would I sign again? Honestly, I don’t know about it. It took a lot of hard work this season, a lot of discipline and it seems the better you do, everyone wants a bit more of you and it becomes more stressful. But I had a lot of fun this season. And I’m finally just proud to say I made a Slam final and started to meet some expectations. I had a lot of fun, I enjoyed it, and definitely felt better off and on the court," Nick Kyrgios said.
