Kyrgios-inspired tennis fundraisers to help fire victims

SYDNEY: Australia’s tennis chief announced a series of fundraisers for victims of raging bushfires on Thursday after an appeal from bad boy Nick Kyrgios.

Kyrgios, often a controversial figure in the sport, called for an exhibition tournament before the Australian Open Grand Slam, after blazes that have claimed 18 lives and forced mass evacuations.

“C’mon @TennisAustralia surely we can do a pre @AustralianOpen exho to raise funds for those affected by the fires?” tweeted the 24-year-old, who has handed a 16-week suspended ban in September after a series of outbursts.

Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley responded by saying fundraisers would be held during tournaments including the Australian Open and the ATP Cup team event, telling fans to “stay tuned” for details.

“For weeks we’ve been watching the devastation caused by bushfires across Australia and the people affected are constantly in our thoughts,” said Tiley.

“We want to help these communities in a meaningful way and will announce a number of fund raising and support initiatives that will be rolled out across the ATP Cup, Australian Open and our other events over the coming weeks.”

Kyrgios, in Brisbane for the inaugural ATP Cup team competition, said the tennis world now had the chance to do “something special”.

“Tennis Australia, obviously, has been pretty proactive about it,” Kyrgios said Thursday. “I’m sure something will happen. I’m sure all of us will be involved in some way,” he added.

The bushfires are the major talking point ahead of the 24-team ATP Cup, which is being held in Brisbane, Perth and Sydney.

World number two Novak Djokovic, who is based in Brisbane with Serbia, visited a koala sanctuary and said it brought home to him the devastation wrought by the fires.

ATP Cup officials will be relying on on-site medical experts to monitor air quality in Sydney, where cricket and golf events have been affected by haze from the fires in recent weeks.