Nick Kyrgios has slammed the ATP’s decision to test off-court coaching and believes it takes away the beauty of the game.
The ATP will test off-court coaching from the week commencing July 11 with players allowed to receive instructions in qualifying and main draw matches in tournaments – such as the US Open – and will finish at the conclusion of the ATP Tour finals in November.
Verbal and non-verbal coaching will be allowed as long as it does not interrupt a player or hinder the opponent. Verbal coaching will only be allowed when the player is at the same end of the court as his coach.
Patrick Mouratoglou, who coached Serena Williams but now coaches Simona Halep, says off-court coaching has been going on “at almost every match for decades” anyway.
Kyrgios has vocally opposed the rule change and believes tennis is being stripped of a “unique trait”.
“Completely disagree. Loses one of the only unique traits that no other sport had,” Kyrgios replied to Mouratoglou’s tweet.
“The player had to figure out things on his own. That was the beauty of it.
“What happens if a high-profile player versus a low-ranked player who doesn’t have or [cannot] afford a coach?”
Australian tennis great and commentator Todd Woodbridge also replied to Mouratoglou’s stance on Twitter, saying: “This is so disappointing to see that such a high-profile coach blatantly admits that he has broken the rules of our sport for so long.”
Kyrgios is set to head to Wimbledon unseeded as the world No. 45 should he recover in time from an abdominal injury which saw him pull out of the Mallorca Championships against Roberto Bautista Agut on Wednesday.
He is also due to reunite with Thanasi Kokkinakis in the Wimbledon men’s doubles draw when the Grand Slam gets underway on June 27.
Kyrgios and Kokkinakis stunned the tennis world by winning the Australian Open doubles title in January.
