Aussie Wimbledon star facing assault charge against ex-girlfriend
Wimbledon quarterfinalist Nick Kyrgios will appear in court in Australia next month to face a charge for allegedly assaulting an ex-girlfriend, according to reports in his homeland.
The 27-year-old, who has equaled his best performance at SW149 since 2014 this week, will reportedly be brought before a judge in his hometown of Canberra where Australia Capital Territory police confirmed the charge.
"ACT policing can confirm a 27-year-old Watson man is scheduled to face the ACT magistrates court on the 2nd of August in relation to one charge of common assault following an incident in December 2021," said a spokesperson on Tuesday.
According to local newspaper The Canberra Times, the summons comes in relation to allegations that Kyrgios grabbed his former partner, who has been named as Chiara Passari.
"It’s in the context of a domestic relationship," Barrister Jason Moffett commented to The Canberra Times.
"The nature of the allegation is serious, and Mr. Kyrgios takes the allegation very seriously."
"Given the matter is before the court ... he doesn’t have a comment at this stage, but in the fullness of time we’ll issue a media release," Moffett added.
Kyrgios is currently dating Sydney-based blogger Costeen Hatzi who is accompanying him at Wimbledon, with their relationship officially confirmed at the turn of 2022.
Before that, his union with Passari which ended in October came with claims of Kyrgios cheating on her. In quarantine, they were reportedly once separated by police who came to break up an ugly row.
Later on Tuesday afternoon, however, Kyrgios' legal team released a statement where it was said that media headlines claiming Kyrgios had been "charged" were inaccurate.
"At the present time, the allegations are not considered as fact by the court, and Mr. Kyrgios is not considered charged with an offense until the first appearance," it was noted.
"Until the court formally accepts the prosecution will be proceeding with a charge, and that the charge before the court is to be applied to the person summoned to appear, it may be misleading to the public to describe the summons in any other manner than a formal direction to appear to face allegations, the precise nature of which is neither certain at this moment nor confirmed by either the prosecution or Mr. Kyrgios," the statement added.
"While Mr. Kyrgios is committed to addressing any and all allegations once clear, taking the matter seriously does not warrant any misreading of the process Mr. Kyrgios is required to follow," his legal team concluded.
After receiving two fines in this year's edition of the competition already for spitting at a heckler and using obscene language, Kyrgios' Wimbledon campaign continues on Wednesday with a quarterfinal meeting against Chile's Cristian Garin.
