Nick Kyrgios criticises Dominic Thiem for defending players who attended ill-fated Adria Tour

Thiem, who played in the charity event which proved to be a disaster as it spread Covid-19, told Austrian media that Kyrgios had ‘made a lot of mistakes’ and should not criticise others

Ian Ransom
Wednesday 08 July 2020 12:48 BST
Comments
Nick Kyrgios has spoken against his fellow professionals
Nick Kyrgios has spoken against his fellow professionals (Reuters)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Australia’s Nick Kyrgios has criticised Dominic Thiem for defending players who competed at the ill-fated Adria Tour and subsequently tested positive for Covid-19.

Kyrgios has repeatedly criticised organisers and players at the abandoned event in the Balkans, where Novak Djokovic, Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric and Viktor Troicki all tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Thiem, who also played in the charity event but did not contract the virus, told Austrian media that Kyrgios had “made a lot of mistakes” and should not criticise others, and the comment triggered a rebuke from Kyrgios on social media.

“What are you talking about @ThiemDomi? Mistakes like smashing rackets? Swearing? Tanking a few matches here or there? Which everyone does?” Kyrgios wrote on Twitter. “None of you have the intellectual level to even understand where I’m coming from. I’m trying to hold them accountable.”

Kyrgios said that players who were seen partying while the pandemic raged proved they thought it was a “joke”. “People losing lives, loved ones and friends, and then Thiem standing up for the ‘mistake’,” he added.

Kyrgios last week hit out at Alexander Zverev after a video of the German player dancing at a crowded club emerged online despite the world number seven pledging he would self-isolate following his appearance at the Adria Tour.

Reuters

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in