Just ask 'Mr Google'
Ken Rosewall unloads on Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic
AAP
July 14, 2017 2:57am
A LACK of discipline has led Bernard Tomic and Nick Kyrgios to hit the “self destruct” button and their behaviour is tarnishing the image of Australian tennis, says Ken Rosewall.
The 20-something tearaways have long been tipped for grand slam glory but, after several years on the tour, the sum total of their achievements is three quarter- finals at the majors.
Last week, Tomic was fined $15,000 by the sport’s governing body, the International Tennis Federation (ITF), after saying he was “bored” and had faked injury during a listless first-round defeat at Wimbledon.
Australian stars Bernard Tomic and Nick Kyrgios. Picture: Gregg Porteous
His comments led to him being dropped by his racket sponsor Head. Kyrgios, similarly, has said he struggles to stay motivated and was fined $16,500 by the ATP, which runs the men’s Tour, last October for purposely throwing a game away during his second-round defeat by Mischa Zverev at the Shanghai Masters.
Such lack of respect for the sport does not sit well with 82-year-old Rosewall, who did not earn a penny in prizemoney when he won his first four grand slam titles during the 1950s when the majors were only open to amateur players.
“I feel a lot of us older players, who came from tennis-playing families, we learned to play the game and behave,” Rosewall told Reuters in London. “Plus the fact there was more discipline then. When I first came overseas, Harry Hopman was the captain and coach of the team. Our team was made up of players of 17, 18 and 19 years of age and he was like a father figure.
(L-R) Ken Rosewall and Bernard Tomic.
“The players of today, because they’ve made more money, they think that they don’t need that discipline, and misbehave accordingly,” Rosewall added. Asked if he felt the behaviour of Tomic and Kyrgios reflected badly on the legacy created by his generation, Rosewall said: “That’s pretty accurate. I’d say that.
“You could probably go to all of the Australian players you can think of that have represented Australia in Davis Cup, we’d all say the same thing.”
Rosewall felt Tomic’s behaviour was especially disappointing because “a lot of money from Tennis Australia” has been spent on him and he said the player’s attitude could backfire.
“The other day Tomic said: ‘Well, I’m going to play for another 10 years, then I’ll have enough money and then I can finish’.
“With his behaviour and not trying, which he has admitted to, no one’s going to want him to play in their tournaments,” Rosewall said.
“If you are putting up good prize money as sponsors, they won’t want to take the risk that he’s going to misbehave or won’t try.”
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/t...c/news-story/df89b66a4f85cb1a463fd8d39b87b889
After his match against Thiem at Wimbledon. Source was some French website.
