Home » Sports News » Marcelo Rios prefers Nick Kyrgios over Roger Federer and other top stars for this reason

Rios also said that he likes Italian professional Fabio Fogini alongside Nick Kyrgios

Former World No.1 Marcelo Rios picked Australian Nick Kyrgios over Roger Federer and other tennis stars as his favourite player on the circuit.

The Chilean, a controversial figure back in his playing days also added that he liked Italian Fabio Fogini due to the way they played tennis.

Former World No.1 Marcelo Rios has picked Australian Nick Kyrgios as his favourite player in the circuit.
Former World No.1 Marcelo Rios has picked Australian Nick Kyrgios as his favourite player in the circuit. (Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Kyrgios has earned the reputation of being the bad boy in tennis due to his antics on and off the court. The Australian’s bad temper is one of the factors that made him Rios favourite.

“I s*** with laughter with Kyrgios and Fognini. I like to see that tennis. Today you throw a racket and they put a fine on you, you can’t do anything. Tennis has made so many rules …,” read Rios’ statements collected by DNA Radio after going on Instagram live with his former coach Alex Rossi recently.

ustralian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has earned the bad boy reputation in tennis recently due to his antics on and off the court.
Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has earned the bad boy reputation in tennis recently due to his antics on and off the court. (Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Rios himself was a quite popular character during his days as a professional, garnering a lot of hatred due to his outspoken demeanour.

The Chilean also got involved in a lot of controversies, despite being one of the talented players of his generation.

“It was not arrogant, I wanted to do it”

Rios confessed that he once thought about quitting tennis after grabbing the No.1 spot and was very close to announcing his retirement. He also supported his earlier thought by adding that it was not out of arrogance but because he felt the need to do it.

Former Chilean tennis professional Marcelo Rios greets the crowd during his country's Davis Cup encounter in 2018.
Former Chilean tennis professional Marcelo Rios admitted that he had thought about quitting tennis after grabbing the No.1 rank. (Getty Images)

“I don’t remember if I told my dad that when I became number one, I was going to retire from tennis. I was a minute away from say at the conference that I was leaving. It was not arrogant, I wanted to do it. Then I thought about it coldly and said: What the hell do I do next? I go to college?”, Rios said.

The 1998 Australian Open finalist also said that he was scared of the coronavirus that has gripped the world and that he was not yet ready to die.

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