Georgie Parker: Polarising Nick Kyrgios doesn’t owe Australian fans anything

Tennis is unique in that we more often than not cheer for the person, not the country.

If your favourite player — say for example it were Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal or the great Serena Williams — was up against an Australian, you often found you won, or lost, either way.

This meant your loyalties to our country become selective, particularly when our tall poppy syndrome kicks in, or our self righteousness reigns supreme.

I think you’d be hard pressed to find a person that would feel that more than our very own Nick Kyrgios.

Nick is polarising, but he wants to be that way; he knows how to push any button to get the reaction he’s wanting that day. It is box office, just how he likes it.

Kyrgios doesn’t owe anyone anything. His talent is his, and he can do whatever he wants with it — it’s not for us to decide that.

His talent is unquestionable, but obviously his effort is. And honestly, I don’t have a problem with that for the most part.

Of course, when playing a match, the integrity of the match and sport cannot be compromised, but the effort prior in terms of his training habits or his desire to improve and be the best he can be is up to him, and him only.

Do I wish he tried more? Of course I do, because imagine the player he’d be and being witness to that would be special. But does it matter he doesn’t? Absolutely not.

For every Lleyton Hewitt or Sam Stosur, two athletes that got every single ounce out of their body, there are 100 athletes that didn’t.

I genuinely believe most athletes don’t get the absolute most out of themselves, and it takes being on the other side, where you have time to self-reflect that you realise that maybe you could have done things differently.

My ceiling as an athlete was incredibly high, yet I was still someone who had to fight for my spot in the Hockeyroos. In terms of pure talent, I had it in spades, but my work ethic at times was questioned by my coach and teammates.

In hindsight I realised I wasted a lot of time not looking after my body and not training hard enough, particularly when I was younger.

I was lucky enough to get somewhat of a second chance by playing footy, where, to the annoyance of my hockey coaches, I became a much more professional athlete.

I was older, wiser, and with a point to prove. I made the most of my sessions and was fitter and leaner because I knew my footy talent wouldn’t get me through (largely because I didn’t have much).

I believe the more talented you are, you need to have a deeper desire to be great. If you have more talent you get away with doing less, but only to a point. Nick got to that point, and with much less effort than those around him, he got himself to No.11 in the world.

Some people have the work ethic with less talent, some have the talent with less work ethic. And the champions? Well, they’re the lucky ones with both.

Kyrgios doesn’t owe anyone anything. His talent is his, and he can do whatever he wants with it — it’s not for us to decide that.

As Frenchman and former world No.8 Gael Monfiils said in a press conference at the Australian Open last week after being asking if he could win the tournament: “Me? No… that’s your dream, not mine’.

If you want to do it, you go for it, but don’t live your dream through the life of a someone else, and be disappointed in them if they don’t achieve it.

They may just not want it as much as you do, but that’s for them to decide. It’s their life after all.