Nick Kyrgios has responded to Jimmy Arias' criticism, saying he didn't even know who he was before he mentioned his name. Arias, a former world No 5 and a one-time Grand Slam semifinalist, appeared to mock Kyrgios' comments about retiring before 33.
"@ariastennis you got some sort of issue? Although I had no idea who you were before my mate messaged me 10 mins ago, I’d appreciate if you kept my name out of your mouth to keep you relevant… well at least to give you some form of credibility," Kyrgios wrote.
Arias, 58, played between 1980 and 1994 and he also finished his career with five titles. "Lol 5 titles and slam semi final. That’s cute, at least have a better career then someone before you criticise them," Kyrgios said.@ariastennis you got some sort of issue? Although I had no idea who you were before my mate messaged me 10 mins ago, I’d appreciate if you kept my name out of your mouth to keep you relevant… well at least to give you some form of credibility.
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) July 30, 2023
Lol 5 titles and slam semi final. That’s cute, at least have a better career then someone before you criticise them 😂😂😂 — Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) July 30, 2023
Haha yeah? When who played? Hahahaha really strong era of tennis — Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) July 30, 2023
What did Arias say about Kyrgios?
Kyrgios, who is 28 years old, has been hinting over the years that he doesn't intend to play in his thirties.
Most recently, Kyrgios said "there is no way" he would playing pro tennis at 33. “I don’t know what he’s talking about when he says this schedule is out of control. He’s played one match this year. He seems to take every other year off, so he should be able to play for another 25 years.
It’s just interesting to listen to him talk; let’s see what happens when he’s 33. But as we’re talking right now, I don’t know [if] he’s gonna play five more matches [this year]. He’s played once so far this year.
I’m not sure [his] wrist, knee [or] his tattoo is hurting him too much [from playing] Pokemon maybe. I don’t know. The guy is so talented, he doesn’t really train, he doesn’t do all the things that are actually difficult and make it hard.
And he doesn’t seem to care, although obviously he does. He’s great for the game to have him play, but he’s got to play sometimes. Something’s going on but let’s hopefully see him again. He was great last year. [For] whatever reason, last year he was great,” Arias said of Kyrgios on Tennis Channel.