Nick Kyrgios v Rafa Nadal Wimbledon semi-final 2022: All the latest news, reaction

Raging bulls Nick Kyrgios and Rafa Nadal have endured a rocky relationship for almost a decade. Don’t expect it to be any different when they lock horns again at Wimbledon.

Playing Nick Kyrgios in the Wimbledon semi-finals is Rafa Nadal’s worst nightmare.

The Spanish legend is too polite and too streetwise to say what he really thinks publicly, but he’s no fan of the loudmouthed Australian.

And the feeling is mutual.

The pair have had a running battle ever since they locked horns for the first time, almost a decade ago at Wimbledon in 2014.

Kyrgios famously won that match and even though he’s lost six of their subsequent eight clashes and achieved nothing compared to Nadal’s 22 grand slam singles titles, that hasn’t stopped him from trying to get up the GOAT’s nose.

When they met again at Wimbledon in 2019, Kyrgios admitted trying to smack a ball into Nadal’s chest because he was fed up with losing to the Spanish champion.

“The dude has got how many slams, how much money in the bank? I think he can take a ball to the chest, bro. I’m not going to apologise to him at all. Yeah, I was going for him. Yeah, I wanted to hit him square in the chest.”

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There is absolutely no love lost between the Spaniard and the quick-talking Australian.

The last time Kyrgios beat Nadal was in Mexico in 2019, when their already rocky relationship hit another low.

Kyrgios posted a provocative message on his Instagram about Nadal which said: “I can smell the blood when I play this dude”.

Nadal was unimpressed, accusing Kyrgios of wasting his talent with his contempt for the game and other players.

“It is not that he isn’t a great player, it’s just he does not have respect. And that’s not right,” Nadal said.

“(He’s) a player who has the talent to win a Grand Slam and be fighting for the top positions of the rankings.

“I don’t think he’s a bad guy, not at all. I think he’s a good guy, but what he lacks is a little respect for the public, for his rival, and also for himself.”

Kyrgios swatted aways Nadal’s complaints and advice, saying he was not interested in what he had to say, then hit back with a counter claim that his rival was bending the rules by taking too long between points.

Nick Kyrgios has never shown any remorse for his confrontations with Rafael Nadal.

“He doesn’t know me. So I’m not going to listen at all. That’s the way I play. The way he plays, he’s very slow between points,” the Australian said.

Their most recent match, which took place at Indian Wells in California in March, was another feisty affair.

Nadal won the tight three-set contest but his win was overshadowed by Kyrgios bringing Hollywood actor Ben Stiller into a row he had with a spectator, before he threw his racquet away, almost hitting a ball boy.

“Are you good at tennis?” Kyrgios shouted at a fan after he told him to raise his game.

“No,” replied the spectator.

The semi final opponents shake on it. Picture: Getty Images

“Exactly, so why are you speaking?” Kyrgios then pointed at Stiller in the front row before declaring: “Do I tell him how to act? No!”

Kyrgios then vented his rage at the umpire after being distracted by another spectator while he was serving.

“Well done. Unbelievable job of controlling the crowd. It is between the first and second serve, a guy screaming out loud. It’s ridiculous, bro.”

Kyrgios’ on-court meltdowns are so commonplace now it’s half the reason people go to watch him play but they do sometimes go too far.

While he’s never shown any remorse for his confrontations with Nadal or the officials in charge of their matches, he did make a sheepish apology over an ugly postscript to his last defeat at Indian Wells when he slammed his racquet into the court, and the ricochet narrowly missed one of the children fetching balls.

Kyrgios initially took issue with reporters who quizzed him about the dangerous incident before realising his error and issuing an apology then tracking down the boy to give him a brand new racquet.

Kyrgios smashes his racquet while playing Nadal at the 2020 Australian Open.

Nadal celebrates against the Aussie after taking the third set in the same match.

“Obviously, was that my intention? No. Because I threw the racquet. Did I throw the racquet anywhere near him originally? It landed a metre from my foot and skidded and nearly hit him.

“I’m human. Things happen like that. Obviously it was a very misfortunate bounce.

“I think if I did that a million times over it wouldn’t have gone that way.”

No one ever really knows what to expect from the unpredictable Kyrgios — tennis’ ultimate showman — bit one thing is assured.

With a place in the Wimbledon final on the line, the stakes could not be higher, so there will be no love lost when the pair square off centre court on Friday.

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