Casper Ruud says a feud with Nick Kyrgios would only bring out his ‘A game’.
World No. 4 Casper Ruud says he didn’t receive a Christmas card from Nick Kyrgios this year, but dodging a feud with the Aussie is in his best interests for a tactical reason. Find out what it is.
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Casper Ruud didn’t receive a Christmas card from Nick Kyrgios but says there are no hard feelings between the pair despite the Norwegian star being a critic of the Australian’s on-court antics in the past.
And he wants no beef with the talented Aussie, who would only use it as motivation to overcome the world No. 4 if they meet this summer.
Kyrgios’s withdrawal from the United Cup means the pair are unlikely to meet until the Australia Open, where Ruud, who was locked in a battle with Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz for the year-ending No. 1 ranking, is among the favourites.
The 24-year-old is known for his integrity and conduct, having sealed the ATP’s Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award this season for the way in which he plays.
He first called out Kyrgios in 2019 following his Italian Open meltdown when the Australian was defaulted in his second-round contest against the Norwegian for hurling a chair on to the court, with Ruud calling him to be banned for six months for his petulance.
Kyrgios returned serve calling the Norwegian’s play “boring af”, igniting a three-year feud which seemed to still be simmering earlier this year when wildcard entrant Kyrgios beat then world No. 8 before saying in the press conference: “I hear no talking now. None. F*ck*ng none.”
But Ruud, in Brisbane with team Norway ahead of the United Cup preliminary rounds, said there were no hard feelings.
“I didn’t receive a Christmas card from him, nor him from me but if we see each other we can say hello,” Ruud said.
“There’s no hard feelings, honestly. I mean, there was little feud and the media always want to make that seem more than it is but Nick is such a talented player and he can beat anyone.
“You don’t want to have a feud going on against him because he will probably want to bring his A game whenever he plays you.
“There’s nothing really going on. What happened in Rome happened and he got the better of me last time at Indian Wells.”
Ruud says he is “no angel” himself but in becoming the first man in 18 years not named Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal to win the Stefan Edberg Award and joining the likes of Aussie Pat Rafter on the honour list, he is also no fan of the type of boneheaded behaviour Kyrgios so often indulges in.
“It is nice to be a good sport as you would say here in Australia,” Ruud said.
“Anyone can behave well when you are leading 6-2, 5-2 but to show good behaviour when it is not going your way shows true character.
“I get frustrated a lot myself. It is not like I am some kind of angel on court but I guess throughout the year I have been able to behave good enough to get this recognition from the players.”
As is often the case with Kyrgios though, his off-court demeanour is a stark contrast to his manner on court.
“He came to me at the Laver Cup last year in Boston, congratulated me after my victory and said that I was doing great,” Ruud said.
“So he’s been positive and cheering me on for the last year or so.
“It was fun also to see him do so well at Wimbledon without a coach and coaching himself to the final.
“He’s a fun character to look at and watch on TV, so if we play, hopefully it’s going to be a fun match - it always seems to be fun when we play.”
TOMLJANOVIC PROMISES ‘NOT FAKE’ NETFLIX SERIES ALONGSIDE KYRGIOS
- Jonathon Moran and Todd Balym
Australian tennis sweetheart Ajla Tomljanovic says there will be nothing fake about her role in the upcoming behind-the-scenes Netflix documentary that is set to catapult tennis’s global popularity on the eve of the Australian Open.
Tomljanovic and fellow Aussie Nick Kyrgios are two of the main characters Netflix producers followed around the world in 2022 filming “Break Point”, a series similar to F1’s smash hit Drive to Survive.
No topic was off limits during filming and while some F1 drivers like world champ Max Verstappen shut out Netflix producers due to sensationalised editing, Tomljanovic has no anxiety ahead of the January 13 launch.
“I have seen a little bit of it already, I am not nervous,” Tomljanovic said.
“I know what I filmed and everyone in the production has been so lovely and I think the message we are trying to send throughout, there is nothing to be scared of, it is just we are showing our lives in depth behind the scenes and hopefully people get more of an idea about what we do.
“I think that this type of thing only works if you are really transparent and that is why when I was thinking whether I want to do this or not, it wasn’t an easy decision because I want to be real and I want to not fake it.
“There is a little bit of fear about how you might come across and you are letting people in your circle and you are not used to that because for so long it has just been you and your team and we are all very tight knit.
“I think it is really nice that players have been really open and on-board about filming.”
Tomljanovic will launch her 2023 season on Friday when she spearheads Australia’s United Cup team alongside Alex de Minaur, Nick Kyrgios and Zoe Hives.
Kyrgios and Hives will start the tournament on Thursday against Great Britain, with Tomljanovic and de Minaur to contest their singles matches the following day.
After quarter-final results at Wimbledon and US Open last year, Tomljanovic is hopeful she can make a solid start to the 2023 season in Sydney and then break her Australian Open curse where she has never progressed beyond the second round.
“I think it is one of those things in sport that just hasn’t been meant to be in a way,” she said.
“I have had heartbreakers where I didn’t finish matches and didn’t stay tough in the nerve-racking moments against top players.
“There is a little bit of luck of the draw and things have to come together for you.”
De Minaur is coming off a strong year where he led Australia to the Davis Cup final last November and is confident he can keep riding the momentum to Melbourne where he reached the fourth round last season.
“I am definitely ready, that is what it is all about for me, putting in the hard yards, all my training, all of my matches building up to that common goal,” de Minaur said.
“I am looking forward to this year. I feel like I am, as always, in the best form I have been.
“Ultimately throughout my career, I feel like I have been constantly improving and I feel way better this year than last year and that is how I felt last year as well.
“I am not very far away from these top guys so maybe a bit of a leap to turn a couple of those tight matches around and then all of a sudden I am going to be up there with all of these guys.”
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