Nick’s time is running out

Australia’s Nick Kyrgios looks at a heckler during his match against Liam Broady of Great Britain at the Australian Open. Pic/Getty Images

Every sport has its great players and also great characters, though to call the latter great is probably doing injustice to the word. There are more characters in an individual sport than a team sport, since the team ethic and culture can and does inhibit players from going out of the team circle so to speak.

Right now, with tennis being more in the news with the deportation of the No.1 tennis player in the world, Novak Djokovic, the focus has also shifted to the characters in this sport. The first name that comes up when characters are spoken about is Nick Kyrgios. The Aussie is seldom out of the news and most times it is for something he has said or done and not for the tennis that he has played. About his talent, even the great John McEnroe has raved about it and anybody who knows a bit about tennis accepts that Kyrgios has some of the most outrageous and unexpected winning shots and serves in the modern game. But does that help him win the majors?

Battling with yourself

It will be hard to remember the number of majors where he has seen the second week of the tournament. Yes, he can cause upsets and dump a top-ranked player, but will he go on to win the seven matches to win a major title? That doesn't seem likely, because more than the opponent across the net, Kyrgios's main battle seems to be with himself and the demons inside his head. The outbursts, the foul language, the flamboyant winners make him pull crowds in, but when his career is over how many titles, leave aside the majors, will he have to show in his trophy cabinet? Not many probably.

John McEnroe

McEnroe also was somewhat similar, but he channelled his on-court frustrations into crafting wins and has not just majors, but several titles to show for it and that's why he is one of the legends of the game.

If Kyrgios can do the same then he too can go down as a major winner, but unless things change drastically it won't happen as time seems to be running out for him. The connoisseurs love players who keep their cool and produce sporting brilliance to keep winning. The daily crowd, though, like more bang for their bucks and so want to see more than just the sport and they love the guys who do the unorthodox and engage with them as they do so.

So, while the Big 3 - Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic - are hugely admired, if you ask the common man, he would rather watch a Kyrgios because he will get to see some great shots as well as a disagreement with the referee, opponent, someone in the crowd or even with himself. This way, he feels he has got more than the value of his ticket or ‘paisa vasool' as it's called in Hindi.

Characters in cricket too

In cricket too, there have been characters, but in the end most, if not all, have pretty ordinary career statistics compared to the popularity for being more visible on the field. Today, with sport becoming part of the entertainment industry thanks to TV and OTT platforms, many players are more famous for their off field stuff like cars, accessories, etc than the cricket they play. The great ones also have the above, but their focus on the game is complete and so they are consistent with their performances on the field and go on to become legends of the game.

The parents and elders will always show these legends as examples to their children, who are growing up though the children themselves might enjoy watching the iconoclasts that the so-called bad boys of the sport are.

The administrators in sport too might tut-tut at the behaviour of the bad boys, but will secretly want more of them to boost the gate takings and TV viewership.

Sport is not just sport any longer. It is showtime now.

Professional Management Group