Nick Kyrgios hit with ban and hefty fine for 'aggravated behaviour' aimed at Stan Wawrinka
The young Australian made comments during a match relating to Wawrinka's girlfriend
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Your support makes all the difference.Nick Kyrgios faces a further fine and a 28-day suspension if he transgresses again, following his offensive comments directed at Stan Wawrinka in Montreal a fortnight ago.
The Association of Tennis Professionals, which runs the men’s tour, announced on Monday that it would fine Kyrgios an additional $25,000 (about £15,900) and ban him for 28 days if he does not meet certain conditions over the next six months.
Kyrgios was originally fined the on-site maximum of $10,000 after a court microphone at the Montreal Masters picked up his post-match comments to Wawrinka in which he claimed that Thanasi Kokkinakis, his Australian Davis Cup colleague, had “banged your girlfriend”. He was also fined $2,500 for unsportsmanlike conduct following a comment made to a ball person during the same match.
The ATP inquiry concluded that Kyrgios had committed a “major offence”. The world No 37 will be ordered to pay the additional fine and serve the ban if he incurs any fines for verbal or physical abuse or accumulates fines totalling more than $5,000 for any offences at ATP tournaments over the next six months.
Gayle David Bradshaw, executive vice-president of the ATP, said that the incident had “reflected poorly on our sport”. He added: “Nick has expressed regret and the best result would be that he learns a lesson from this incident and that he understands he is responsible to the tour and to fellow players for both his actions and his words. It is with these factors in mind I feel he should have the opportunity to ‘earn’ his way out of additional sanctions.”
Britain’s James Ward will go into the US Open next week seeking to end a run of seven successive defeats. The 28-year-old has not won since reaching the third round at Wimbledon. His latest defeat came against South Korea’s Hyeon Chung, who won 6-7, 6-4, 6-3 in the first round of the Winston-Salem Open.
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