Nick Kyrgios's beaten opponent Liam Broady shocked by Australian Open crowd behaviour

British qualifier Liam Broady claims he was on the receiving end of sledging and booing from the John Cain Arena crowd during his first-round loss to Nick Kyrgios, describing aspects of the experience as «absolutely awful».

John Cain Arena has built a reputation as the «people's court», with spectators renowned for being less reserved than those attending matches on other Melbourne Park courts, such as Rod Laver Arena.

Kyrgios jokingly described Tuesday night's crowd — even at a reduced capacity — as a «zoo» in light of their behaviour during his 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Broady in their Australian Open first-round match.

The Canberran has long been a crowd favourite at John Cain Arena and he spoke after the match about how he drew upon their energy.

Broady said he was shocked to be sledged and booed throughout the match.

«Everyone is telling me, 'Oh you'll really enjoy it, it's going to be amazing [playing Kyrgios],'» he said.

«But I thought it was absolutely awful. I obviously wanted to go out there and win, so losing matches, in general, isn't enjoyable.

»The atmosphere was incredible, but it was the first time I've ever walked onto a tennis court and been booed, which was for me was a crazy experience.

«You get sledged from the sides, you can't believe that they don't pick [it] up on TV.

»So it was a very, very difficult atmosphere to try and handle and he's (Kyrgios) incredible at getting them behind him and he plays better for it.

«I think that's very rare, especially in the sport of tennis. Now people don't really interact with the crowd like he does and that's one of his biggest strengths.»

Broady said he did not blame Kyrgios for the behaviour of the spectators.

«The way he orchestrates the crowd: you see videos on TV, but