Nick Kyrgios was absolutely impressed by Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open victory over Alex de Minaur as he jokingly wondered how he was able to beat the Serb twice. On Sunday, Djokovic dismantled de Minaur 6-2 6-1 6-2 in the Australian Open round-of-16.
In early 2017, Kyrgios defeated Djokovic in their first meeting on the hard courts of Acapulco. A few weeks later, Kyrgios again defeated Djokovic – this time in Indian Wells. “Watching Novak tonight makes me feel good about my tennis in general.
How have I beaten this guy,” Kyrgios tweeted following Djokovic’s dominant win over de Minaur.
Watching Novak tonight makes me feel good about my tennis in general 𤣠how have I beaten this guy 𤣠— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) January 23, 2023
Kyrgios called for the Australian Open to show respect to Djokovic
Before the start of the Australian Open, Kyrgios publicly called for the Melbourne crowd to be respectful toward Djokovic.
“I would just say that Novak is here and he hasn’t made any rules. All he wants to do is put on a show. He’s chasing things that athletes are rarely able to chase. He’s one of the greatest athletes of all time, not just on the tennis court.
He’s here to put on a show for Melbourne itself. I think as fans, we should be appreciating him. Obviously, I know that there are going to be fans that are not going to want him to win, but I think they can’t cross that line as fans.
You guys have paid money to watch a guy play. It’s pretty contradictory if you’re going to go there and be a clown about it. You’ve got to respect him a little bit at the end of the day because he’s one of the best,” Kyrgios said.
So far, Djokovic has been receiving good support at Melbourne Park. There have been moments when some hecklers decided to take a dig at Djokovic but overall the Serb’s return to Melbourne Park has been going well so far.
