What's With Tennis and Douchebag Behaviour?

The recent history of professional men's tennis is littered with incidents of bad on and off-court behaviour. As Australia fought back to win its Davis Cup tie in Darwin last month, the eyes of many were on Bernard Tomic, banned from the tie and arrested 15,000km away in Miami after an out-of-control party.

In the latest example, 19 year-old Nick Kyrgios marred his already marred reputation by telling world number five, Stan Wawrinka, that fellow Australian, Thanasi Kokkinakis, slept with his girlfriend.

"Kokkinakis banged your girlfriend. Sorry to tell you that mate," chirped Kyrgios, shortly after losing the first set at the Montreal Masters. Wawrinka later took to Twitter, saying, "What was said I wouldn't say to my worst enemy. To stop [sic] so low is not only unacceptable but also beyond belief."

While this is a new one for tennis, it's not entirely unusual. But what is it about the sport that constantly has young guys like Kyrgios, Bernard Tomic, and Lleyton Hewitt (back when he was young) attracting headlines for all the wrong reasons?

One of the greatest male players of all time, John McEnroe, was known as much for his on-court outbursts than his seven Grand Slam titles. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s and quickly earned the moniker of "SuperBrat" from the British tabloids, which were accustomed to the prim and proper behaviour that goes hand-in-hand with the All England Club.

Reflecting on his volcanic behaviour in his 2002 autobiography Serious, McEnroe attributed his outbursts to the lonely, often insular nature of tennis itself. "When you can't control yourself, you want someone to do it for you—that's where I acutely missed being part of a team sport," McEnroe wrote. He remains one of the finest doubles players in history and is remembered for helping to revive interest in the Davis Cup in the 1980s.

McEnroe's comments certainly resonate with expert opinions. Dr Emma Kavanagh, a lecturer in sports psychology and coaching sciences at Bournemouth University in the UK, says that tennis, like any sport, has players for whom the ability to suppress emotions, deal with pressure and maintain control on court is more challenging.

"But I think the difference is that it seems magnified in a singles sport. Who else can players look at to diffuse it? There are no hiding places," Dr Kavanagh says.

"The individual touches every ball and will be on court for as long as the match runs. There is no interaction with their coaches, no substitutes and no other players to help work through a bad spell. They rely on self-regulation and monitoring and breaks in play to re-set and regain control."

Reflecting on his junior development and early career, McEnroe wrote in Serious that he "was pushed into something I didn't really want to do".

Andre Agassi, another American, hit the tennis scene some 10 years later. In his similarly revealing autobiography, Open, he wrote of how his father pushed him into a career he didn't want and never enjoyed.

"I play tennis for a living even though I hate tennis … with a dark and secret passion and always have," Agassi wrote. The seven-time Grand Slam winner revealed that a bout of depression, brought on by the pressures of his tennis career, led to him abusing crystal methamphetamine while still an active player.

There has been a shift in how early young players begin playing in professional tournaments since McEnroe's, and even Agassi's, day. Tomic was a touch older than 16 when he made his Grand Slam debut at the 2009 Australian Open. Kyrgios, too, was not old enough to buy a beer in a pub when he played his first Grand Slam. This, says Dr Daryl Adair, an associate professor of sport management at the University of Technology, Sydney, is an identifiable problem.

"Improvements in behaviour often develop with maturity," he says. "Roger Federer was something of a hot head when young, but has evolved to become a very cool and extraordinarily accomplished player."

So, there might be hope yet for Kyrgios and Tomic to turn their behaviour around. Kyrgios collected nearly A$13,000 in fines for his on-court meltdowns, including swearing and racquet abuse, at Wimbledon in June and July. Yet before the tournament, he signed a sponsorship deal with Beats By Dre, a headphone company with the motto "Play by your own rules".

According to Dr Adair, while being known as a wild child may be a financial positive in the short term, Kyrgios should be wary. "Brash reputations are only advantageous if the athlete is a top-flight performer and successful over time. Otherwise, it can come back to bite," he says.

For Dr Kavanagh, the mental battles and behaviour of players can even make a thrilling sport even better. "Tennis is one of the exciting mental sports in terms of the need for control and regulation. The mind games are plenty and volatile players have nowhere to hide on a tennis court," she says.

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