Heated mood in Wimbledon: Nadal sovereign - Kyrgios scolds himself to victory

Rafael Nadal gives Lorenzo Sonego, who is almost ten years his junior, no chance and walks into the round of 16 at Wimbledon.

Heated mood in Wimbledon: Nadal sovereign - Kyrgios scolds himself to victory

Rafael Nadal gives Lorenzo Sonego, who is almost ten years his junior, no chance and walks into the round of 16 at Wimbledon. The game between Nick Kyrgios and Stefanos Tsitsipas, on the other hand, causes blood to boil over. While the Australian took issue with the referee and his own team, his Greek opponent vented his anger on the ball.

The 22-time Grand Slam tournament winner Rafael Nadal has reached the round of 16 in the grass classic in Wimbledon. The 36-year-old Spaniard showed his most confident performance of this tournament in the evening in a 6: 1, 6: 2, 6: 4 against the Italian Lorenzo Sonego. In the previous two rounds, Nadal had given up one set each.

Nick Kyrgios was also victorious. He threw number four seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas out of the Wimbledon tournament in a highly emotional duel with a lot of argument. The Australian defeated his former doubles partner from Greece 6: 7 (2: 7), 6: 4, 6: 3, 7: 6 (9: 7) and reached the round of 16 in the grass classic for the first time since 2016. Kyrgios messed with the referees several times, used swear words and mobbed his own team in the stands. After losing the second set, Tsitsipas hit a ball on the stands and just barely hit a spectator.

Kyrgios recalled the US Open 2020 when Novak Djokovic was disqualified for hitting a linesman with a ball. Tsitsipas shouldn't continue either, demanded Kyrgios and lamented for several minutes. The referee only issued a warning. For the second warning, when Tsitsipas thundered a return to the scoreboard, the Greek had to accept a point loss. The mood became more and more frosty. Tsitsipas aimed several balls directly at his opponent's body. After a net roll, Kyrgios bowed instead of the usual apology. With a fine stop, the 27-year-old secured victory and celebrated exuberantly. "Whatever happens on the pitch, I love it," Kyrgios said afterwards. He now meets Brandon Nakashima from the USA.

In the round of the top 16, Nadal will face Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp, whom he had already defeated at the French Open. After the triumphs at the Australian Open and the French Open, the Spaniard still has the chance of his third Grand Slam title of the year.