ATP Suspends Kyrgios for Eight Weeks

October 17, 2016 | By New York Tennis Magazine Staff

Following the completion of its investigation into Nick Kyrgios’ second round match last week at the Shanghai Rolex Masters, the ATP has announced that Kyrgios has been found to have committed the player major offense ‘Conduct Contrary to the Integrity of the Game.’

The offense means that Kyrgios receives an additional fine of $25,000, and is suspended from ATP tournaments for eight tournament weeks, effective from Monday, Oct. 17 through to Sunday Jan. 15, 2017.

However, the suspension will be reduced to three tournament weeks upon agreement that the player enters a plan of care under the direction of a Sports Psychologist, or an equivalent plan approved by ATP, meaning Kyrgios could regain eligibility to compete on the ATP World Tour or Challenger Tour from Nov. 7, 2016.

Kyrgios had already been fined a total of $16,500 for breaches of the ATP Code of Conduct by the ATP Supervisors on-site in Shanghai. He received the on-site maximum fine of $10,000 for violations of the Best Efforts provision in the Code, as well as a $5,000 fine for Verbal Abuse of a Spectator, and a $1,500 fine for Unsportsmanlike Conduct.

Kyrios took to his Web site to respond to the ATP’s actions:

“Following the ATP’s decision today, I would like to take this opportunity to apologize again for the circumstances in Shanghai. The season has been a long one, as I battled several injuries and other challenges towards the end of the summer. The Asian circuit was particularly tough after the long week and win in Tokyo and with the travel throughout the continent, my body finally just gave out in Shanghai, both physically and mentally. This is no excuse, and I know very well that I need to apologize to the fans–in Shanghai and in other parts of the world–as well as the tournament organizers in Shanghai who do an amazing job. I of course know how important the fans are to the success of our sport and I personally love the interaction with fans in the many different cities throughout the world on the tennis circuit. I am someone who gives a huge amount of time to my fans because I love and value their support. Their energy is what motivates me to reach for the top of the game. I regret that my year is ending this way and that I will not have a chance to continue chasing the ATP Finals. This was an important goal for me. I do understand and respect the decision by the ATP, and I will use this time off to improve on and off the court. I am truly sorry and look forward to returning in 2017.”


New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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