Nick Kyrgios loses to Reilly Opelka at US Clay Court Championships in Houston, after latest outburst aimed at umpires
Nick Kyrgios has blown a gasket again, bowing out of a third successive US tournament in ugly meltdown mode.
Themaverick Australian was fined a total of $80,000 after losing in Indian Wells and Miami and could face a further financial penalty after getting knocked out of the US Men's Clay Court Championship in Houston while spouting obscenities and rowing with the umpire.
Kyrgios ended up losing his cool in his semi-final on Saturday and was penalised a point for a second audible obscenity, which cost him a crucial game late in the second set of his 6-3, 7-5 loss to giant American Reilly Opelka.
It may be that Kyrgios had some justification for his rants after umpire Joshua Brace admitted he had made a mistake with a call at 5-5 in the second set.
However, after the key point, which left the score at 30-30, Kyrgios completely lost the plot, losing the next point with a distracted error and, after earning his second warning for more on-court swearing, getting docked the point which cost him the game at break point down.
Kyrgios was lucky not to earn another, potentially game-and-match-losing penalty as he continued to scream out loud «F***!» as he walked back to his seat for the changeover.
There, Kyrgios continued to harangue the official, muttering: «F***ing out! How are you not calling it? It's an absolute joke.»
During the exchange, the clearly flustered Brace admitted: «I believe it now, I made a mistake.»
It wasn't the first debate the pair had had over the incident, which happened when Opelka's return at 30-15 had appeared to go over the baseline but was not called out as Kyrgios went on to lose the point.
«If it is out, then I did miss it,» said the umpire, leaving Kyrgios to tell him sarcastically: «Well, congratulations