Australian tennis legend Todd Woodbridge says Nick Kyrgios “misread the room” when he suggested the Australian Open should be cancelled.
Kyrgios stunned fans earlier today when he suggested the next Grand Slam tournament should be called off due to the impact COVID-19 lockdowns have put on the Victorian population.
“I don’t think the Aus Open should go ahead, just for the people in Melbourne, you’ve got to send a message,” Kyrgios said earlier on his No Boundaries podcast.
“How long did [Melbourne] do in lockdown? 275 days or something?”
After hearing those comments, Woodbridge said cancelling the tournament would be a disaster for the state of Victoria.
“It was a foot fault, he’s misread the room,” Woodbridge told 2GB’s Wide World of Sports radio.
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“I’ve lived in Melbourne throughout the lockdown… we want to get out and the Australian Open is going ahead.
“You’ve got to understand how important it is, not just the state of Victoria, but for Australia to get back on that world stage. To be able to show the rest of the world, who have been looking at us for the past three to four months, thinking what’s going on down under.
“It would be the worst thing possible if we were to not have the Australian Open.
“Without the Australian Open going ahead, that is the vehicle that funds tennis in Australia… to grow the game, you need to have the Australian Open hit the courts.
“If you were to cancel an Australian Open, you lose your slot in the calendar. It doesn’t take much for it to be gone. That’s something we don’t want… the players love coming to Australia.
“He’s misread the room, It’s a shame. But I can promise you that the Open is up and it is running and it will be happening.”
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After Kyrgios’ comments made headlines around the tennis world, the 26-year-old took to Instagram this afternoon to clear the air.
Kyrgios said his concerns were “more so for the people of Melbourne” and that it wouldn’t be fair to allow players into the country who aren’t vaccinated.
Woodbridge said Kyrgios was forgetting the important role the Australian Open plays for the economy.
“I think where Nick missed the mark that little bit – I think he was trying to look after the people of Melbourne a little bit, but we want to to get out,” Woodbridge added.
“We don’t want to be not having events. We lost the Grand Prix this year and that’s an important event for promoting Australia and we just need to get back out there.
“Think about the tradies, ball kids… everybody that is a part. There are around 10,000 people employed in some way or another around the month of tennis in Melbourne.
“That’s huge for the economy, you can’t take that away.
“He’s brilliant with the racket and he is giving us some of his thoughts, and in the media we do want to hear his thoughts, even if they’re not always the right one.
“I think from this he will learn in other ways how to articulate his thoughts.”