Nick Kyrgio was insulted by Michael Venus with the New Zealander having very harsh words for his colleague from Australia.
Kyrgios did not really understand why Venus made the comments he made explaining that most of what he does is for the crowd. He said:
"I think tennis is a sport, as of now, that’s never been
talked about as much. We need more attention, we need
more viewers. My goal is to only bring new fans that may not be
following tennis to watch tennis. If they flick on a match and they have Thanasi and I
playing in an entertaining doubles match, they know nothing about
tennis, if they watch that match just then, they probably would tune in
next time. That’s what I’m about. That’s what I want to bring. I think
that’s how the sport is going to survive."
Then he fired back against Venus who called Kyrgios a knob:
"As to Michael Venus, I’m not going to destroy him in this media conference room right now. But Zeballos and Granollers are singles players. They’ve had great careers. I respect them a lot more than I respect Michael Venus."
He then complimented Granollers and Zeballos for embracing the amtmoshere:
"think the balance was there today. The quality of tennis
was amazing. I think the festival atmosphere was still there. I think
they embraced it. They knew it was an incredible atmosphere. Zeballos
took a selfie with us before we walked out. That’s how you embrace an
atmosphere"
He snuck it another jab at Venus:
"You’re not losing a match and then getting salty about it
afterwards. It’s ridiculous. It’s not like I’m going out there putting
on a clown suit and creating a circus. I have also played, won titles,
won big titles, I have played the traditional way. I think now I’m able
to channel a different fan base."