Gary Lineker called out on Piers Morgan's Uncensored after England dig sparked backlash
Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios gave his uncensored views about Gary Lineker during an interview with Piers Morgan as he joins the BBC commentary team for Wimbledon 2024.
In the interview, airing Monday night on the Piers Morgan Uncensored YouTube channel, Kyrgios, 29, was asked whether he would be critical of players in his commentary like former football player Gary Lineker was last week.
Kyrgios admitted to Piers: “I'm one of the commentators that don't drill players… I won't drill them as hard as I've been drilled.
“If they are making a mistake or doing something a bit silly, I might say, ‘oh’, [but] I can't really have a leg to stand on if they're, you know, breaking a racket or something...I know the pressure that all these players are going through.”
function loadOvpScript(){let el=document.createElement('script');el.setAttribute('src','https://live.primis.tech/live/liveView.php?s=114945&playerApiId=v114945');document.getElementById('ovp-primis').appendChild(el)} window.top.addEventListener('primisPlayerInit',e=>{try{if(e.detail&&e.detail.playerApiId==="v114945"){if(window.document.getElementsByClassName('jwplayer')[0]){e.detail.float('disable')}}}catch(e){}});window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded',()=>{setTimeout(()=>{if(typeof flagTcfLoaded!=='undefined'&&flagTcfLoaded===!0){loadOvpScript() ExpressApp.Log('[Load] OVP flagTcfLoaded',new Date())}else{document.addEventListener("tcfLoaded",()=>{loadOvpScript() ExpressApp.Log('[Load] OVP tcfLoaded',new Date())})}},1500)})He added that players know “when they're not having a good day or when they're doing something wrong”. He continued: “When I lost to Andy Murray in that fourth round and I was throwing a bit of a tantrum, I already knew that my behaviour wasn't good. And you're like, ‘Pack up your toys and go back to Australia.’”
READ MORE: Gary Lineker risks wrath of Harry Kane and England again with Switzerland remark
Nick Kyrgios has joined the BBC as a commentator for Wimbledon 2024. (Image: Getty)Gary Lineker sparked backlash last week when he issued a scathing verdict about England’s 1-1 draw with Denmark at Euro 2024.
Speaking after the game, the Match of the Day presenter described England’s lacklustre performance as “s**t” and singled out captain Harry Kane.
He said: “In all honesty, I think Harry Kane needs to do a lot better. I think his movement was minimal, he didn’t look to go behind and he doesn’t often, but even when he comes short, he’s just drifting short very lethargically, he’s plodding short and that’s not going to help.
“When you’re a striker, your two jobs are obviously score goals, which he’s brilliant at and has been all his career. But I think he needs his manager (Gareth Southgate) to say ‘Right, I need a little bit more from you, Harry’. I would have expected that if I had had that kind of performance.”
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Kane later responded to the comments during a press conference, saying: "I would never disrespect any ex-player. All I would say is remember what it is like to wear the shirt and that their words are listened to.
"We all want to win a major tournament and I'm sure they want us to win a major tournament. Being as helpful as they can and building the lads up with confidence would be a much better way of going about it."
Gareth Southgate also spoke out on Gary Lineker’s critical comments, insisting that they are “not important” to him.
Ahead of England’s final group match against Slovenia, Southgate said: “I haven’t heard what he said. I have heard one word. That is the world we are in.
“I am oblivious to it. It is not important to me at all. What is important to me is I have to guide this set of players confidently through the terrain that is the tournament... I don’t need to engage in the external, because I am my own biggest critic and I think our players are as well.”
window.topArticlesScript="https://cdn.images.express.co.uk/js/dist/article-top-articles20240625.min.js" Who are the BBC's highest-paid stars?The BBC publishes the salaries of its highest earners every year in its annual report.
The top five in 2021-22 were:
1. Gary Lineker - £1,350,000
2. Zoe Ball - £980,000
3. Alan Shearer - £450,000
4. Steve Wright - £450,000
5. Stephen Nolan - £415,000
It comes as Nick Kyrgios’s appointment as a Wimbledon pundit has been met with backlash. The 2022 runner-up will provide analysis for the BBC across six of the 14 days as he continues to recover from his injury.
Kyrgios has often been referred to as the ‘bad boy of tennis’ and racked up multiple fines for his on-court language. In 2021, he pled guilty to assaulting his ex-girlfriend Chiara Passari in Canberra, though avoided a criminal conviction.
The BBC confirmed that they have “received complaints” about Kyrgios’s hiring and issued a response to their concerns.
The response said: “As a current and high-profile player, Nick Kyrgios will provide insight and analysis of the action on the court from his experience in the game.
“We are in no way condoning his cited previous actions or behaviours, on and off the court, and he is employed to share his views on tennis only. He has provided similar services to other major sports broadcasters in recent months. The legal process he was involved in has concluded, is well documented, and he has spoken about it publicly.”
Gary Lineker called out on Piers Morgan's Uncensored after England dig sparked backlash
Gary Lineker called out on Piers Morgan's Uncensored after England dig sparked backlash
Gary Lineker called out on Piers Morgan's Uncensored after England dig sparked backlash
Gary Lineker called out on Piers Morgan's Uncensored after England dig sparked backlash
Gary Lineker called out on Piers Morgan's Uncensored after England dig sparked backlash
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