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Dmitry Tursunov believes Nick Kyrgios' popularity at every venue he plays at has a lot to do with his on-court demeanor, praising the Australian tennis star for being a "strong personality." The former World No. 20 opined that tennis players are often unable to 'be themselves' on the court due to the existence of rules and regulations as well as public opinion, further highlighting Kyrgios as an exception to the same.
Kyrgios is known for his regular outbursts on the court and is often involved in back-and-forths with chair umpires, the crowd, and at times, even his opponents.
Tursunov expressed his belief that tennis players tend not to speak their minds or show their real personalities when on tour because they are afraid of sanctions and warnings, and also about forming a negative public opinion regarding themselves. The former Russian player-turned-coach feels that players' words are often "twisted."
"Players are afraid to show their personality, to say their minds, because nowadays anything you say can be twisted," Tursunov said on The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast.
"You say that, 'I played great today,' someone's going to say that, 'Oh, he sounds cocky, he's putting his opponent down.' So players in general are just afraid to be themselves," he added.
Having said that, Tursunov, who previously coached Emma Raducanu, feels that Nick Kyrgios' matches often attract packed crowds regardless of where he is playing, because fans want to see characters like Kyrgios. Tursunov feels that Kyrgios does not care about being 'neutered' through warnings and praised him for the same.
"That's why I think Nick Kyrgios sells out every freaking stadium that he plays in because he hasn't been neutered enough. He's been fined enough, but he doesn't mind it. He's a very strong personality of you ask me," Tursunov added.
The 40-year-old, who is currently coaching Belinda Bencic, suggested that tennis authorities should not have a problem with players expressing themselves in their own way. He used the example of players 'flipping the finger' to the crowd, something Kyrgios himself is infamous for, to convey the same. Tursunov believes such incidents get the crowd emotionally involved, which is good for the sport.
"I mean, what's the problem if a player is just throwing a middle finger to the crowd? It looks bad, the whole crowd is booing, but you just got the crowd emotionally involved," Tursunov stated.
Nick Kyrgios feels his personality makes it challenging for him to be a pro tennis player, taunts pro tennis circuit
Nick Kyrgios recently said that continuing to 'be himself' on the professional tennis tour makes it challenging for him to be a tennis pro. Kyrgios taunted the professional circuit, saying that tennis is a sport that "likes to stay in a small little box," thus suggesting that personalities like himself are not appreciated enough within the sport.
The 27-year-old shared his thoughts in response to a fan asking him about the biggest difficulty of being a pro tennis player.
"Honestly, me being the personality that I am... In a sport that likes to stay in a small little box," Kyrgios responded on Instagram.
Kyrgios underwent surgery on his injured knee shortly after withdrawing from the 2023 Australian Open just two days before the start of the tournament. Kyrgios' last tour-level singles tournament was the 2022 Japan Open back in October.
