‘Nick Kyrgios sells out stadiums because he hasn’t been neutered enough’ says Emma Raducanu’s ex-coach Dmitry Tursunov

Nick Kyrgios sells out stadiums because he has a “strong personality” and “hasn’t been neutered enough”, according to Emma Raducanu’s former coach Dmitry Tursunov.

Kyrgios is one of the most outspoken players on the ATP Tour and is often one of the sport’s biggest entertainers.

However, former world No. 20 Tursunov thinks Kyrgios stands out because other players are “afraid to show their personality”.

“Players are afraid to show their personality, to say their minds, because nowadays anything you say can be twisted.

“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.

“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 pretty strong personality if you ask me.”

“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,” he said.

“You got them to hate someone, to feel something, versus can’t fart in the stands, can’t open a bag of chips, throw a racquet…”

Kyrgios has not played competitively this season due to injury.

Asked recently on Instagram about the most difficult part of being a tennis player, Kyrgios said: “Honestly, me being the personality that I am… in a sport that likes to stay in a small little box.”

On his recovery, he added: “I’m getting there! Still a long way to go, but can do some extensions… so that’s a start!”

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