As long as tennis has welcomed spiffy, well-behaved gentlemen such as Björn Borg and Roger Federer to its posh courts, the sport has also been home to plenty of devil-may-care bad boys who love to trample on tradition.
John McEnroe screaming “You cannot be serious!” at the stuffy British chair umpire at Wimbledon; Ilie Nastase jumping into bed with a claimed 2,500 women and shouting
“s – – t!” while playing a special match for French kids; current world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev giving the 2019 US Open crowd the finger while they booed.
Now that’s fun!
We remember angry antics a lot better than hugs and handshakes. When the 2022 US Open begins Monday, some new and returning rogues will take the court — ready to make news with more than just their backhands.
Nick Kyrgios
Age: 27
Rank: 26
Behaving badly: Often, tennis’ spitfires start to calm down after a while. Not Australian Nick Kyrgios. During this year’s Wimbledon final — his first at a grand slam — against Novak Djokovic, he went on an expletive-laced tirade in front of the royal family. Off with his head!
For yelling “It’s a f – – king joke” in earshot of little Prince George, the angsty Aussie was fined $4,000.
During the same match, he demanded that an unruly fan be removed from Centre Court, saying she was “drunk out of her mind” and that she’d had “about 700 drinks.” The woman is now suing him. Earlier in the tournament, he spat in the direction of an onlooker and was fined. All told, he racked up $14,000 in penalty charges in London.
Stefanos Tsitsipas
Age: 24
Rank: 5
Behaving badly: When Tsitsipas broke out at the 2019 Australian Open, beating Roger Federer in the fourth round, he was the golden-haired Greek god of tennis. Now a well-established world No. 5, he’s considered more of a Hades than a Zeus.
The downturn started at last year’s US Open, when he took an eight-minute bathroom break while playing against beloved champ Andy Murray. Tsitsipas was accused of cheating and Murray said he “lost respect” for the French Open finalist. Over the next two rounds Open crowds piled on, booing him and not helping him in his eventual loss to nice guy Carlos Alcaraz in the third round. “Everyone is suddenly against me!,” he said. His once shiny reputation still hasn’t recovered.
Holger Rune
Age: 19
Rank: 32
Behaving badly: Despite his cherubic face, Rune (a big hit at the US Open last year when he took a set off Djokovic), has a nasty temper. The Dane was investigated by the ATP in June 2021 for yelling homophobic slurs during a match. Then at the French Open this year, the aspiring Hamlet screamed at his own mother, “If you’re not helping then leave!” (She did.)
During that same match, he was roundly ripped for barely shaking his opponent Casper Ruud’s hand after losing, which led Norwegian Ruud to say, “He needs to grow up, shut up and be more gracious.”
Alexander Zverev
Age: 25
Rank: 2
Behaving badly: Zverev is out of the Open this year after suffering an excruciating injury at the French Open in the spring. But he’s definitely one of tennis’ most scandal-plagued figures.
In October 2020, his ex-girlfriend Olga Sharypova accused the German of abusing her throughout their relationship in an interview with Racquet magazine, including attempting to smother her with a pillow two years earlier in New York. (The ATP has opened an investigation into the allegations.)
On the court, his anger was on full display in February at the Mexican Open in Acapulco, where he slammed his racket into the umpire’s chair repeatedly, narrowly missing the man’s foot. He was ousted from the tournament for the reckless violence.
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