"I rather play than not play in the Q's": Zizou Bergs embroiled in war in words with Reilly Opelka and Nick Kyrgios

A viral moment from Zizou Bergs victory over Alex Michelsen has got the tennis world's attention after the pair portrayed complete opposite actions and emotions after the Belgian clinched victory in the first-round of the Paris Masters. It has even got the likes of Reilly Opelka and Nick Kyrgrios to share their opinion on the events.

It was a closely fought tie between the pair, with Bergs taking his fourth set point to move ahead before Michelsen sprant into a 5-0 lead enroute to levelling the tie at one-set all. Bergs was on top in the third set, which would crucially see him romp to victory. He clinched his first match point to win 6-3, 2-6, 6-2.

What followed has gone viral. The frustrated and aggrieved Michelsen started to furiously hit his racket onto the court, expressing his seething emotions. On the other side of the court, Bergs was having the time of his life, has he started to moonwalk once he saw Michelsen's shot make contact with the net. The 26-year-old would then turn and jump in celebration, pointing to someone in the crowd ahead of having of a firm handshake with his displeased opponent, with possibly a few words exchanged.

Fellow American Opelka came to the aid of his recent Laver Cup teammate. He called out Bergs actions whilst commenting under a post of the clip on Instagram. He wrote: "I'd rather lose 6-2 in the third than win 6-2 in the third and moonwalk." This provoked Bergs into action, as he responded: "I rather play than not play in the Q's."

This was taking a dig at the tall American after he failed to progress in his opening match in Paris, losing out to home-favourite Corentin Moutet. Opelka secured an early break in the opening set and held utilising his massive serve. However, a late break would force Moutet back into the match with the Frenchman then trouncing Opelka in the third to comfortably progress.

Despite this logical reasoning, it did not impress former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios who fired back at Bergs. "Weak ass reply Opelka has made finals of master events - before wrist surgery was going deep pretty much all the time, real ones know," Kyrgios wrote on X. He referenced the 2021 Canadian final that Opelka fought to back in 2021, losing out to the number one seed Daniil Medvedev. Since then, Opelka has only managed to muster up nine Masters 1000 wins in 12 events he had competed, with his wrist surgery that kept him out of the 2023 season a big factor, with multiple untimely setbacks keeping him away from the game. He has yet to return to those same levels, making it to just one ATP final at the start of the year in Brisbane where he retired in the opening set against Jiri Lehecka.

With all of this going on, Bergs will now be preparing for a titanic clash against the world number two Jannik Sinner, who has continued to look imperious on indoor hardcourts, extending his win-streak to 21 matches after claiming titles in the Six Kings Slam and Vienna Open. He has also had a huge boost in his title prosepcts with his mmain rival, Carlos Alcaraz, falling at the first hurdle against former Wimbledon semi-finalist Cameron Norrie. It will be a massive ask for Bergs to get anything out of this match, with him only recently securing his first top-10 triumph earlier in the year against Andrey Rublev in Miami. If he can defy the odds and claim another, then it would most likely become more talked about than this on-court debacle.