Roger Federer has leapt to Nick Kyrgios' defence following the Australian's extraordinary meltdown in Rome on Thursday.
Just hours after he lit up headlines following a no holds barred interview, Kyrgios defaulted his match with qualifier Casper Ruud at the Italian Open.
Kyrgios received a game penalty for throwing a folding chair onto the court, having reacted during the third set of the second-round clash after losing his service game.
The 24-year-old had teed off at a member of the crowd, accusing him of moving as he served to save a break point.
THE INCIDENT: Kyrgios throws table before storming off court to default match
"You f-----g r----d bro," said Kyrgios, captured by a fan sitting directly behind his chair.
After the chair umpire hit Kyrgios with a game penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct, he threw his racket into the dirt before throwing the chair, prompting the umpire to call the match referee courtside.
Another outburst at the fan ensued: "I’ve been giving 100 percent and I have to deal with f-----g idiots like you... I’m done, I’m f-----g done. I’m f-----g done, bro, I don’t give a f--k."
Kyrgios packed up his equipment and walked off, defaulting the match before the match referee could disqualify him, but still shook hands with both Ruud and the chair umpire.
Afterwards, Kyrgios posted to social media, saying "emotions got the better" of him.
Well...
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 16, 2019
Kyrgios gets a game penalty and then walks off court, handing Casper Ruud a place in the last 16#ibi19 pic.twitter.com/T4jhvbV1RN
It's not the first time Kyrgios has had a run-in with a spectator - at the Miami Open in March, a man was ejected following a spat with the Australian.
Kyrgios - who will now lose $33,635 in prize money from the tournament in addition to 45 ATP points - was later criticised by Ruud, who said many players on tour want the Aussie banned.
"I think he got what he deserved. He thinks he can do what he likes," Ruud said.
"It doesn’t seem like anything makes him change these days. The ATP should do something.
"I'm not the only one who thinks he should be suspended for at least half a year."
20-time major champion Federer shared a more lenient view, saying the fine, loss of prize money and loss of ATP points is punishment enough for a humiliated Kyrgios.
Federer touched on the Australian's incident in Shanghai last year, when an umpire suggested a point during his first-round defeat was "really borderline".
A year earlier, also in Shanghai, Kyrgios was fined $10,000 and stripped of $21,085 prize money after quitting his first-round match against Steve Johnson after losing the opening set.
"I don’t think he should be suspended," Federer said after saving two match points in his win over Borna Coric.
"He walked off the court. What did he do? He hurt a chair? That’s not enough for me.
"I don’t know if he’s on probation or not from his Shanghai thing. If that’s the case, then obviously you can maybe look into it.
“If that’s run its course, I don’t think he should be suspended."
