Relationship ‘normal’ but ‘we are not friends’
DUBAI // Stan Wawrinka says things between him and Nick Kyrgios are “normal” now and there will be no added spice to their semi-final match at the Aviation Club on Friday as they face-off for the first time since their confrontation at the Montreal Masters last August.
Wawrinka and Kyrgios reportedly had an angry exchange in the locker room after the Australian made some unsavoury comments about the Swiss’ girlfriend during their second-round match in Montreal, and the comments were picked up by a courtside microphone.
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The two have not played each other since, but playing on the same Singapore Slammers team in the Indian Premier Tennis League allowed the pair to mend their relationship.
“We were on the same team and it was good,” said Wawrinka, who beat Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-5, 6-1 to book his place in the last four. “There is nothing else from last year.
“It’s, I would say, normal in the way that he’s a tennis player, I’m a tennis player. We are not friends, for sure. We don’t go for dinner together. But there is nothing else. We see each other on the tour every week almost. That’s it.”
Kyrgios, who beat Tomas Berdych earlier in the evening to makes the semis, also said there were no issues between the two.
“I think we have talked a lot, obviously, since the incident,” Kyrgios said. “I think we have both moved on from it.
“We played on the same team in IPTL. That was actually really good. I got to know him a little bit more. He played great there. He’s one of the best players in the world, no doubt. He’s playing great tennis.”
Wawrinka also had similarly complimentary things to say about Kyrgios’s game, especially after his first ATP Tour title in Marseille last week, and is expecting a tough match.
“For me now to play him, it’s a good challenge,” said the two-time grand slam champion. “He’s playing his best tennis. He won last week. He’s full of confidence. It’s going to be really tough.
“I saw him play many matches last week, and I saw today against Tomas. He’s playing really, really good tennis. I will have to raise my level. I will have to start to serve better, play better, and try to find solution.”
Asked if there will be a little bit of an edge to the match because of the Montreal incident, Wawrinka said: “Not from my side, no. When I enter the court, if I like the person or not, if I’m friends or not, I’m trying to focus on what I do.
“It’s not because we had some problem last year that I will have extra motivation or something else. What he did for sure wasn’t right. I thought it was a big mistake. But that’s it. I’m focusing on what I’m doing. I’m sure to play him tomorrow we will have no problem.
“People will talk about the match, a lot about the match tomorrow, a lot more than normally because of what’s happened last year. But from my side there is nothing that I still have from last year.
“I’m just going to go on the court, try to play my best tennis and try to beat him.”
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