Aussie tennis star Thanasi Kokkinakis is caught up in fiery post-match clash at the net after telling his opponent to ‘shut up’ during heartbreaking loss
- Kokkinakis went down at Madrid Open
- Was involved in fiery post-match spat
- Scenes were heated after the clash
Aussie tennis star Thanasi Kokkinakis is popular with fans for his affable demeanor – but he put that to one side during a fiery post-match clash after a loss to Spanish opponent Jaume Munar on Wednesday.
Kokkinakis bowed out of the Madrid Open 6-7 (7-9) 6-7 (3-7) despite having multiple set points against Munar, who is currently ranked 88th in the world.
But the real tale of the see-sawing, two-hour, 37-minute encounter was the spat between the pair at the the net after the fiery match.
During the first-set tiebreak, Kokkinakis was incensed when he believed he spotted Munar talking to his coaches box, and pointed it out to chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani.
‘Bro, you don’t shut up,’ the Aussie shot at Munar, who then complained about Kokkinakis talking.
Aussie star Thanasi Kokkinakis (right) was involved in a fiery post-match spat with Jaume Munar after their clash at the Madrid Open
Kokkinakis, pictured at the Australian Open earlier this year, refused to back down when confronted by Munar
Jaume Munar was pumped after beating Kokkinakis in straight sets
‘I just thought it was rich for him to complain about talking because he’s done the same thing the whole time,’ Kokkanakis then told Lahyani.
At one point Kokkanakis was given a time violation, and neither points were lost on Munar after the match, who celebrated his win vociferously.
‘Don’t tell me to shut up again,’ the Spaniard said as the pair met at the net to shake hands, to which Kokkinakis combatively replied: ‘Or what?’
The pair continued to argue for several minutes, with Lahyani attempting to intervene.
‘I wasn’t angry at you, I was talking to him (Lahyani),’ Kokkinakis said, insisting he didn’t tell him to shut up during the match.
‘You said I was saying something to my team, and I didn’t,’ claimed Munar, though the Aussie said ‘I saw you looking.’
Kokkinakis, pictured with girlfriend Hannah Dal Sasso at the Australian Grand Prix earlier this month, has been in poor form to start the 2022 season
The Aussie blew a 5-2 lead in the second set, with unforced errors coming back to haunt him despite smashing 35 winners during the loss
The heated debate continued before the pair split and agreed to disagree, before Munar took off towards the stands to celebrate with his home fans.
It’s another disappointing loss for Kokkinakis, who has only one four ATP matches on clay.
The Aussie star blew a 5-2 lead in the second set, and smashed 35 winners, but unforced errors – 45 of them in total – came back to haunt him, and he has unfortunately been in poor form since bombing out in the second round of the Australian Open in January.
He’s now ranked 111th in the world, and will be desperately hoping for a reversal in fortunes.
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