A couple of years ago, Kyrgios had suggested that Carreno Busta was just a clay specialist and said that the former Top 10 player wouldn’t even be close to the Top 50 in the ATP rankings without claycourt tournaments. The comment caused a rift between the two players that is still ongoing.
Carreno Busta won this year’s Canadian Open title after winning a bronze medal at last year’s Tokyo Olympics, which were also played on hardcourts. The Spaniard defeated Novak Djokovic in the Olympic bronze medal match.
Tennis fans recalled Kyrgios’ old dig after the Spaniard won his biggest ATP title to date. One fan said that, on similar lines, Kyrgios himself would never have been successful if tennis was played only on claycourts, given the Australian player’s record on the surface.
Carreno Busta has reached two Grand Slam semifinals - both on the hardcourts at the US Open - in 2017 and 2020. At the Olympics, he defeated Marin Cilic and Daniil Medvedev besides Djokovic en route to the medal.
Here are a few more reactions from fans to Nick Kyrgios’ old dig at Pablo Carreno Busta:
“Our head to head is a laugh” - Nick Kyrgios reacts after Pablo Carreno Busta wins Canadian Open
While tennis fans recalled previous comments by Nick Kyrgios, the Australian player himself reacted in light of Pablo Carreno Busta’s Canadian Open win. Kyrgios expressed that he is not worried at all as he still holds a superior head-to-head record against the Spaniard.
The Australian has won all three matches played against Carreno Busta on the ATP tour. His latest victory came in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Halle Open. Meanwhile, at the 2022 Canadian Open, Kyrgios lost to Hurkacz in the quarterfinals after defeating Medvedev in the second round.
Both Kyrgios and Carreno Busta will now turn their focus towards the Cincinnati Open. While the former will open his campaign against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, the latter will face Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round.
0 votes
