Nick Kyrgios denounced BBC tennis commentator Andrew Castle as ‘a clown’, accusing him of spoiling Carlos Alcaraz’s extraordinary win against Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final.
The 20-year-old won his first title at the All England Club after beating the seven-time Wimbledon winner on Center Court in an epic men’s singles final.
Alcaraz won 1-6, 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 in just under five hours, but Kyrgios clearly found the experience of watching the game on the BBC tedious and urged Castle to keep his involvement to a minimum. .
“The one next to whom the clown is [Todd] Woodbridge in that commentator box just shouldn’t talk, which spoils the game enormously,” he tweeted.
When A pointed out that Castle ‘made it to the third round at Queen’s in 1986’, the Australian also seemed unimpressed.
Nick Kyrgios labeled BBC commentator Andrew Castle a ‘clown’ during Wimbledon final
Carlos Alcaraz (left) defeated Novak Djokovic (right) in five sets in an epic encounter
“Hahaha great,” was Kyrgios’ short response.
A former British No. 1, Castle has been the BBC’s chief commentator on all men’s singles finals for two decades.
As a player, he reached the second round at Wimbledon in 1986 and 1987, but never got past the first round of the Australian Open in three attempts in 1987, 1988 and 1991.
His best result in a singles tournament at any of the four majors came when he reached the third round of the US Open in 1987.
The 59-year-old was more successful as a doubles player, reaching the final of the mixed doubles tournament at the Aussie Open in 1987 and the doubles semi-final the following year.
Despite being annoyed by Castle’s commentary, Kyrgios still found time to praise Alcaraz and Djokovic for producing an age-old thriller.
‘I haven’t seen a whole tennis match in a long time haha THANK YOU @DjokerNole & @carlosalcaraz for that incredible performance. Congratulations to you both,” he tweeted.
Alcaraz, now the third youngest champion in modern times after Boris Becker and Björn Borg, was three years old when Djokovic last lost a five-set match at the All England Club.
Kyrgios urged Castle to shut up on Twitter, accusing him of ‘ruining’ the match
Castle has been the BBC’s chief commentator on all men’s singles finals for two decades
The Spaniard is the first man since 2002 to win at Wimbledon, alongside Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.
“Writing history like I did today, it’s the happiest moment of my life,” he said.
“I don’t think it will change for a long time.
“Beating Novak, winning Wimbledon is something I’ve dreamed of since I started playing tennis. That’s why this is the greatest moment of my life.
‘For a 20-year-old boy, I didn’t expect to reach this stage so quickly. I am very proud of myself and my team. I’m falling in love with grass right now.’
Djokovic, meanwhile, missed the chance to match Roger Federer’s record of eight Wimbledon men’s singles titles and tie with Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles.
Kyrgios was full of praise for both Alcaraz and Djokovic after an incredible final
The Spaniard said winning Wimbledon was the ‘happiest moment of my life’
Djokovic hailed the 20-year-old as the ‘complete player’ after their epic struggle
The Serb admitted he was surprised at how well Alcaraz adapted to the grass and praised the young Spaniard as a ‘complete player’, whose game shared elements with him, Nadal and Federer.
“I didn’t expect him to play so well on grass this year, but he has proven to be the best player in the world.
“To be honest, I’ve never played against a player like him. I think people have been talking about his game for the last 12 months which is made up of certain elements of Roger [Federer]Rafa [Nadal], and myself. I would agree.
“He actually has the best of all three worlds. […] He’s a complete player.’