Nick Kyrgios pleads guilty to assaulting his former girlfriend but avoids conviction | Tennis News

Wimbledon runner-up Nick Kyrgios has pleaded guilty to assaulting his ex-girlfriend in Australia but avoided a criminal conviction.

A magistrate in the tennis star’s hometown of Canberra did not register a conviction against the 27-year-old, describing the simple assault as an act of ‘stupidity’ and ‘frustration’, but said that was not premeditated.

The Wimbledon 2022 runner-up had pushed his former girlfriend Chiara Passari to the ground during an argument in January 2021.

Magistrate Jane Campbell also dismissed the offense on the grounds that it was at the lowest level of seriousness for simple assault.

A psychologist told the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Magistrates’ Court that Kyrgios had suffered from severe depression, suicidal thoughts and insomnia in the past, but his mental health had improved.

On Friday, Kyrgios psychologist Sam Borenstein said in a written report and telephone testimony that the tennis star had suffered from major depressive episodes in the past and had used alcohol and drugs to cope. .

His mental health had led to impulsive and reckless behavior. Mr Borenstein added that Kyrgios’ recent knee injury had led to mild to moderate symptoms of depression, but his mental health was improving.

Kyrgios’ lawyers previously sought to have the assault charge stemming from events two years ago dismissed on mental health grounds, but the request was unsuccessful.

In February last year, Kyrgios opened up about his performance at the 2019 Australian Open, saying what seemed like a positive time in his life had been “one of my darkest times”.

“I was lonely, depressed, negative, abusing alcohol, drugs, pushing away my family and friends,” he wrote on Instagram.

“I felt like I couldn’t talk to or trust anyone. It was the result of not opening up and refusing to lean on my loved ones and pushing myself little by little to be positive. “

Kyrgios made other references to his mental health issues during his runs to the Wimbledon final and the US Open quarter-finals.

After ending Daniil Medvedev’s US Open title defense in September last year to reach the quarter-finals, Kyrgios expressed pride in getting out of “some really difficult situations, mentally”. and “some really scary places” off the pitch.

Kyrgios suffered a career setback last month when he withdrew from the Australian Open with a left knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery.