BBC issue statement on Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon after being told to 'hang head in shame'
Wimbledon's broadcaster have explained their controversial hiring.
The BBC have responded to complaints after Nick Kyrgios was announced as a Wimbledon pundit over the next two weeks. The Aussie is set to provide analysis for the Beeb across six of the 14 days, but his hiring was met with fierce backlash from viewers.
The 2022 runner-up will not be competing this year as he continues his recovery from injury and instead will star from the commentary booth. However, his hiring has been criticised after Kyrgios pled guilty to assaulting his ex-girlfriend Chiara Passari in Canberra in 2021, though avoided a criminal conviction.
“The BBC should hang its head in shame at this appointment,” said Caroline Nokes, the Conservative MP and women and equalities committee chair. “It’s a disgrace and shows the utter contempt our national broadcaster has towards women.
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“Not content with consistently underpaying their own female staff and forcing out women once they hit a certain age, they now bring a man who admitted assaulting a woman on board for Wimbledon.”
Kyrgios has often been referred to as the ‘bad boy of tennis’ and racked up multiple fines for his on-court language, though has played just one competitive match since October 2022 and is working at Wimbledon as an expert analyst.
The BBC confirmed that they have “received complaints from people who are unhappy that Nick Kyrgios will be employed on our coverage of Wimbledon 2024” and issued a response to their concerns.
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“As a current and high profile player, Nick Kyrgios will provide insight and analysis of the action on the court from his experience in the game,” the Beeb’s response said.
“We are in no way condoning his cited previous actions or behaviours, on and off the court, and he is employed to share his views on tennis only. He has provided similar services to other major sports broadcasters in recent months.
“The legal process he was involved in has concluded, is well documented, and he has spoken about it publicly.”
A magistrate in Kyrgios' hometown of Canberra did not record a conviction against the 27-year-old after his actions were deemed to be on the low end of assault, describing the common assault as an act of 'stupidity' and 'frustration' but insisting that it was not premeditated.
The court heard that Kyrgios had pushed his former girlfriend to the ground during an argument in January 2021.
A psychologist told the court that Kyrgios had suffered from severe depression, suicidal ideation and insomnia in the past, adding in a written report and testimony by phone that the tennis star had suffered from major depressive episodes in the past and had used alcohol and drugs to cope, with his mental health issues leading to reckless and impulsive behaviour.
