Former world No.1 golfer Greg Norman has issued a stern warning to controversial tennis players Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic, telling the youngsters not to “represent your country like an idiot.”
The two-time Major champion is a huge fan of tennis and was married to 18-time Grand Slam winner Chris Evert for 15 months. So naturally, the Great White Shark doesn’t want to see Australian tennis experiencing ongoing controversies.
Kyrgios added to his bad boy reputation with three code violations in Shanghai last week, which prompted AFL player Tex Walker to call him a “flog” and a “peanut” on Twitter.
Now Norman has weighed in, speaking on Brisbane radio:
“I don’t care about the individuals themselves but when you’re carrying the Australian flag you don’t represent your country like an idiot, you represent the country like the country wants to be represented,” Norman said.
“They have said some stupid things and acted stupidly.
“I hope they both become ultra successful because at the end of the day they will be humbled very quickly. If you become successful you cannot carry on like this.
“I haven’t seen Nadal or Djokovic or the great golfers like Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan and Arnold Palmer acting like that.
“If you want to act that way, fine, but remember you’ve got respect for your country and your sport that you have to protect.
“I’d like to sit down with them, athlete to athlete and talk about the responsibilities they do carry. They have to make some changes and some sacrifices.”
