Football is commonly known as the “world game” and the popularity of the sport was never more apparent than on Day 2 of the Australian Open.
As matches rolled on throughout the day, a bizarre new chant among fans in attendance inside various venues began to surface.
The chant initially caught the attention of players, viewers at home and commentators during British star Andy Murray’s five-set win over Nikoloz Basilashvili.
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After the 35-year-old prevailed in his first match at Melbourne Park since 2019, having undergone hip surgery, commentators seemed baffled as to why he was seemingly being booed.
The sound was soon revealed to be an imitation of Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo‘s iconic “Siuuu” celebration that has gone viral in recent years after Ronaldo first began using it during his days with Real Madrid.
The word “Siuuu” originally comes from the Spanish word ‘Si’, which means yes. In an interview back in 2019, Ronaldo explained the reason behind the now-iconic celebration, which began during a pre-season match in 2013.
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“I started to say ‘si’, it’s like ‘yes’ when I was in Real Madrid,” he said. “I was in the USA and we played against Chelsea [in 2013] and I don’t know where this is coming from, the celebration.”
As Murray took to the mic for his walk-off interview, he too appeared to be confused by why he was seemingly being booed.
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“It’s painful stuff there, those guys,” the former Australian Open finalist said in response to a segment of the crowd.
Murray expanded on what went through his head during his post-match press conference later on, admitting he thought he was being booed by the crowd.
“Initially, I thought it was [a boo], because there were some people booing during my practice yesterday. I have no idea what for. Yeah, so originally that’s what I thought it was,” he said.
“But then yeah after a few times it was like, no, they’re doing that, I think it’s like ‘Siuuu’ or something that Ronaldo does when he scores. It was incredibly irritating.”
Murray was not the only player to be impacted by the Ronaldo chant, with crowd favourite Nick Kyrgios also experiencing the sound at John Cain Arena, the same court Murray had played his match on.
The “Siuuu” from the crowd became unbearable to Kyrgios, who is used to raucous crowds, during the second set of his win over Britain’s Liam Broady.
“Once every set yeah? F—–g every point, ‘Siuuu’ ‘Siuuu’,” Kyrgios said as he imitated the crowd’s chant before a serve.
After the Australian rocketed down an ace with his very next serve, the crowd hilariously responded with an even louder “Siuuu” which prompted Nine commentator Todd Woodbridge to say: “That ace is like another Ronaldo goal”.
Kyrgios has made John Cain Arena his own over his last few Australian Open campaigns, even openly voicing his displeasure at playing on Melbourne Park’s centre court, Rod Laver Arena.
However, despite his affinity for a vocal crowd, Kyrgios too was taken aback by the sound.
“I don’t know what I’ve done to this crowd because you guys are a zoo now. You guys are out of control,” he said, spurring an even louder “Siuuu”.
“I’m just happy to be in front of you guys again. Honestly, it’s so much fun.”
Like Murray had done hours earlier, Kyrgios expanded on his reaction to the Ronaldo chant and he was equally bewildered.
“It’s just a stupid [chant], f–k, I can’t believe they did it so much,” he said.
“They were doing some Ronaldo thing. Ronaldo does it every time he scores. It’s like – I thought they were going to do it for 10 minutes. They did it for two-and-a-half hours, like every point. I don’t know why. It was a zoo out there.”
A short while after Kyrgios’ win, another set of rowdy fans were back at it again with the Ronaldo chant, this time during Alexei Popyrin’s five-setter against Arthur Rinderknech.
Like Murray, Rinderknech also appeared confused and seemed to think he was being booed by Popyrin’s supporters as he furiously taunted the crowd after sealing the win.
The Frenchman cupped his hand next to his ear, imploring the crowd to boo him even more as he jumped up and down the court celebrating.
“I’m not entirely sure that’s boos because we saw this evening in Nick Kyrgios’ win and there were similar sounds,” Adam Peacock said on commentary. “They want the Ronaldo celebration, the ‘Siuu’.”