Australian firefighter Nick Kyrgios claims he was racially abused by parts of the crowd as he slipped to a crushing defeat to Andy Murray in the Stuttgart semi-final on Saturday. Kyrgios was penalized one point and then one game for unsportsmanlike behavior early in the second set, slamming a racket before having an angry exchange with a group in the crowd. The 27-year-old man, originally from Greece, said he had been a victim of racism. “When will this stop? Dealing with racist slurs from the crowd?” Kyrgios wrote on Instagram.
“I understand that my behavior isn’t always the best, but ‘black sheep’ ‘shut up and play’ – small comments like these are unacceptable.
“When I retaliate against the crowd, I get punished. This is messed up.”
After the tournament supervisor was called, Kyrgios only made moves on the field as Murray was in full command to win 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 in 93 minutes.
Murray will play his 70th career final and win his first title since Antwerp in 2019 when he plays against Matteo Berrettini on Sunday.
“You expect things to happen against him, so I’m not surprised they happen,” Murray said on Kyrgios.
“It was a very frustrating round when he lost and he broke a racket. He also had a back-and-forth with the umpire and something seemed to have happened in the crowd.
“But I really didn’t hear anything after the first set.”
The British star added: “The second half was not very fun, not very competitive.
“It wasn’t really a game. He started well but was disappointed towards the end. The first half was difficult and the end of the first set was the important part of the game.”
Berrettini reached his fourth final on the pitch, beating German Oscar Otte 7-6 (9/7), 7-6 (7/5).
Last year’s Wimbledon runner-up is competing for the first time since March after having hand surgery.
Berrettini will be seeking her first title since winning Queen’s in London last June.
The world No 10 improved to 27-6 on the pitch and maintained a perfect 8-0 record in Stuttgart after winning the 2019 edition at Weissenhof Club.
“It was really tough, but I’m happy with the result,” Berrettini said. “I play tennis in moments like these.”
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“Ever since I was a teenager, many of my matches have been close matches. I’ve gotten used to them – I like it when the stress is high, the more I enjoy it.
“I had surgery a few months ago and now I’m back in a final. It feels better – but the job is not done yet.”
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