Nick Kyrgios admits spitting towards a fan during Wimbledon win

By Matias Grez, CNN

Updated 0841 GMT (1641 HKT) June 29, 2022

Nick Kyrgios admitted to spitting the direction of a fan.

(CNN)Nick Kyrgios admitted to spitting in the direction of a fan he felt was «disrespecting» him during his opening round win at Wimbledon.

The Australian star beat home favorite Paul Jubb 3-6 6-1 7-5 6-7 (3-7) 7-5 in an entertaining match, but felt one supporter overstepped the mark in his heckling.After winning match point, Kyrgios turned towards one of the stands and spat on the floor as he made his way to the net.Andy Murray defends use of cheeky underhand serve in Wimbledon opener against James DuckworthWhen asked by a reporter if he did spit in the direction of that fan, Kyrgios replied: «Of one of the people disrespecting me, yes. I would not be doing that to someone who was supporting me.»I'm okay with receiving a lot of it [heckling]. What I don't understand is as soon as I give it back, for instance in Stuttgart I gave it back, and I got a game penalty.Read More«As soon as I won the match, I turned to him. I've been dealing with hate and negativity for a long time, so I don't feel like I owed that person anything. »He literally came to the match to just not even support anyone really. It was more just to stir up and disrespect."Kyrgios had said earlier this month that he was racially abused by a member of the crowd at a tournament in Stuttgart, which the organizers said they were investigating. The Australian said he was not racially abused on Tuesday, but was concerned about the frequency of fan abuse. Serena Williams' return to Wimbledon ends with dramatic defeat against Harmony Tan«I'm just starting to think that it's normal when it's really not,» he told reporters. «I didn't say anything to