Australian Open: Chaos and spectacle - Kyrgios and Kokkinakis in the final
Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis will play for the doubles title at the Australian Open 2022 on Saturday. Also because the two bring very strong tennis to the court in addition to a lot of anarchy.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Jan 28, 2022, 01:17 pm
When Nick Kyrgios signed up for the Australian Open doubles competition with his pal Thanasi Kokkinakis two weeks ago, what he really wanted was "just to have some fun and a good time". In fact, there is now a lot of personal fun behind them, a good time too – but what has been added amazes the tennis world at the Grand Slam tournament in Melbourne. Kyrgios and Kokkinakis greet the provisional end of a wildly moving tennis campaign as surprise finalists, the circus show of the two actors with proletarian charm experienced its memorable climax on Saturday in an inner-Australian final against Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell. Chaos, spectacle and sensations paved the way for "KyKo", a duo that gave the Australian TV stations the highest ratings - even more than the performances of Nadal and Co. "We like it when it gets wild," said Kyrgios on Thursday after the 7: 6, 6: 4 win against Marcel Granollers/Horacio Zeballos (Spain/Argentina), "and a lot of fans like that too."
The pleasure of the dear competition, however, was limited. When the two local heroes defeated the New Zealand-German couple Michael Venus/Tim Pütz on Tuesday and regularly incited the audience, world-class man Venus later burst. Kyrgios has the "maturity of a ten-year-old, benevolently," says Venus, "and you can see why he never became something on an individual basis." He behaved "like an idiot" on the court. Pütz wasn't particularly amused either Entertainment has nothing to do with spectators being encouraged to disrupt: "It's just unsportsmanlike." There had already been turbulence around the two Aussies in the second Australian Open round, after beating the number one seed , multiple Grand Slam champions Mektic/Pavic (Croatia). Allegedly, supervisors of the Croatian duo in the catacombs threatened Kyrgios with beatings for his provocations on the pitch.
Kyrgios out in singles against Medvedev
Kyrgios was eliminated in the second round against tournament favorite Daniil Medvedev, partner Kokkinakis even at the start against Yannick Hanfmann from Karlsruhe. They didn't seem to have a chance in doubles, but then the gentle end of the tournament, apparently without any prospects, turned into the most bizarre Melbourne story of the 2022 vintage brought them onto the pitch," said Sweden's former world-class man Mats Wilander, "as a double they are now unleashing enormous power." According to ex-genius John McEnroe, "it seems like they want to defiantly show the whole world what they're made of. And that's a lot.
The Grand Slam life with Kokkinakis and Kyrgios was a single show, a circus that was as questionable as it was ludicrous. In any case, the two rioters mercilessly exploited the home advantage, inciting the partly drunk supporters to loud support. The opponents of the Australian duo were sometimes insulted, sometimes booed or irritated in hitting actions. Was everything allowed that somehow pleases or is successful? A question that certainly divided Australia – a nation that has always prided itself on pure sportsmanship more than any other. In newspapers and online media, traditionalists fought bitterly with mostly younger compatriots who opposed the “fug of an old fan culture”.
The performance of the occasional alliance was undisputed, it spoke for itself in black and white. En route to the final, Kokkinakis and Kyrgios defeated No. 1, No. 3, No. 6 and No. 15 on the seeding list – almost all of them long-time specialists and champions in the professional pairing. The two Australians rarely acted as a well-rehearsed duo, but their talent was enough to make it into the final, the first all-Australian final since 1980 (Kim Warwick/Mark Edmondson vs. Peter McNamara/Paul McNamee). "We're bringing something completely new to the court, a different energy, a certain charisma," said Kyrgios, the so-called bad boy of tennis. Nine years after winning the junior doubles title at Wimbledon, he and Kokkinakis now, suddenly and unexpectedly, faced an amazing trophy coup at the pros.
Here the double tableau in Melbourne
laver arena