Second Nick Kyrgios Video: Australian Jabbed Stan Wawrinka, Girlfriend Donna Vekic Twice
A second video emerged Friday showing Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios making lewd insults toward Swiss star Stan Wawrinka during a tournament in Canada, just days after the Aussie found himself mired in controversy after a courtside microphone picked up his explicit trash-talk. In the second video Kyrgios, 20, is shown walking along the baseline in the second-round match at the Rogers Cup in Montreal when he appears to mutter, "He's banging a 19-year-old," according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
The comment is seemingly in reference to his 30-year-old opponent who was purportedly dating 19-year-old Croatian tennis star Donna Vekic. The video follows a firestorm after the courtside microphone broadcasted Kyrgios saying to the recently divorced Wawrinka, "Kokkinakis banged your girlfriend. Sorry to tell you that, mate." The Australian was seemingly referencing his fellow countrymen and good friend, tennis player Thanasi Kokkinakis, who played mixed doubles with Vekic at last year's Australian Open.
Kyrgios drew swift punishment from the ATP for his comments, earning a $10,000 fine, the heftiest sum allowed for "verbal abuse or unsportsmanlike conduct," according to ESPN. The tour also said it had launched a further investigation to determine if his actions constituted a major offense. Following the match, which Kyrgios won after the Swiss star withdrew because of injury, Wawrinka responded sharply to the trash talk on Twitter, saying his opponent had acted "disrespectful in a way I could never even imagine."
At first Kyrgios brushed the controversy aside in his post-match press conference. "He was getting a bit lippy at me so, I don't know, it's just in-the-moment sort of stuff," Kyrgios said. "I don't really know. I just said it."
But he has since apologized in Facebook post, writing, "My comments were made in the heat of the moment and were unacceptable on many levels."
The purported relationship between Wawrinka and Vekic first drew the public's eye after the young star was seen cheering on the reigning French Open and Australian Open champion at Wimbledon in July. The 19-year-old has posted to social media about Wawrinka, furthering suggestions the two are dating.
It was immediately unclear if the ATP was aware of the second video when it levied the fine against Kyrgios, who lost in straight sets to American John Isner in the next round of the Rogers Cup, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. He was booed by fans when he took the court.
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