"We don't like each other" - Nick Kyrgios reveals how he feels about Rafael Nadal, echoes Daniil Medvedev's complaints about Spaniard

Nick Kyrgios recently reiterated his dislike for Rafael Nadal. The Australian's take on the former No. 1 stemmed from a question featuring Daniil Medvedev's rant from this year's Shanghai Masters, during which the Russian complained to the chair umpire about how the Spaniard was rarely punished during his playing days for delaying opponents on serve.

During his fourth-round clash against Learner Tien in Shanghai, Medvedev was slapped with a code violation by umpire Mohamed Lahyani. According to Lahyani, the Russian took far too much time in preparing to return as Tien was about to serve at one stage.

The development greatly irked Medvedev, who subsequently lashed out at Lahyani by remembering Nadal doing the same thing on multiple occasions in their clashes and how umpires seemed reluctant to punish the Spaniard.

"All my life, I've been serving & waiting for Rafa for 55 seconds. And you give me a code violation on the first occasion. I played Rafa 5 times, there was not one time I was ready to serve and he was ready to return. He didn't get one time violation. To me, today, at the slightest thing you give it to me. I always waited to return, and you didn't give it to him. You're crazy. Completely crazy," the Russian said.

More recently, Nick Kyrgios was asked to weigh in with his thoughts on Daniil Medvedev's outburst on the Unscripted podcast hosted by Josh Mansour. Here, the former World No. 13 echoed the Russian's sentiments, saying:

"You have a timer to serve between points right? It should be 25 seconds. So Rafa is just known for like, dragging out the times. There have been times when he's taken a minute and a half to begin points and no one says a word. But then like as soon as it's 26 seconds, they're like, 'code violation, loss of serve', and I'm like, 'brother, is there any discretion here or is it just like Rafa can do whatever he wants?'" (from 42:48)

Later, Kyrgios spoke up once again about how he and Nadal never got along. However, the Australian admitted to having respect for the 22-time Major champion.

"He's the greatest of all time. We don't like each other but I respect (him)," the 30-year-old added.

When Rafael Nadal feuded with Nick Kyrgios after narrow loss to Australian

Rafael Nadal in action against Nick Kyrgios (not in picture) at the 2019 Mexican Open in Acapulco (Source: Getty)

Nick Kyrgios famously registered a comeback victory against Rafael Nadal after saving three match points to reach the last eight at the 2019 Mexican Open in Acapulco. During the match, the Australian complained that the Spaniard was repeatedly taking far too much time in preparing to return his serve. This incensed the Spaniard, and following his loss to Kyrgios, he told reporters:

"He is a player with huge talent and could be winning Grand Slams or fighting for the number one ranking. But he lacks respect for the public, the opponent and for himself."

Kyrgios, not one to take things lying down, subsequently issued a response, maintaining that the Spaniard kept delaying his serve throughout the contest.

"I am not going to listen at all. That's the way I play. The way he plays is very slow between points," the Australian said.

The Spaniard retired from tennis tearfully at last year's Davis Cup Finals. Meanwhile, Kyrgios has struggled for match time in recent years due to his inability to maintain fitness.

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Edited by Sudipto Pati