Australian Open 2022: Nick Kyrgios exits, but chaotic crowd still rings in our ears

But somehow this time feels different. We're not asking ourselves 'what's next for the NK show' or 'is the boy from Canberra wasting his talent?'

The biggest talking point out of a four-set loss to Daniil Medvedev on Thursday night wasn't even about Kyrgios smashing a racquet when things got tense, which was a welcome change.

Instead we're talking about the crowd. Maybe because we've adjusted our expectations to Kyrgios the entertainer rather than Kyrgios the grand slam prodigy. Or maybe because "siuuu" is still ringing in our ears and we're wondering if tennis goes back to normal crowd cheering behaviour or the Kyrgios circus continues even without the Australian Open's showman conducting his orchestra of mayhem.

The television audience peaked at more than 1.6 million during Kyrgios' rollercoaster against No.2 seed Medvedev, glued to the screens throughout the primetime 7-6 (7-1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 loss.

There's probably equal parts booing and/or siuuuing and cheering for Kyrgios at his matches if The Canberra Times poll is anything to go by. Of the more than 700 responses to the question do you enjoy the theatrics on court and in the crowd that come with Nick Kyrgios, 36 per cent said no, 31 per cent said yes and the rest were unfazed.

Kyrgios' greatest ability - perhaps greater than sending down 220 kilometre per hour bombs or his trademark tweeners - is the way he smashes tennis tradition.

You don't go to watch the NK show if you're not prepared for a bit of rowdiness - either from the crowd or Kyrgios himself. He's the Happy Gilmore of the men's tour, although he might not ever reach the top like Happy did.

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But will the "zoo" of fans leave Melbourne Park, like many hope they will, or will they follow Medvedev, who is clearly now the villain, and others to create the same chaotic atmosphere.

Medvedev was expressionless during the show, but let his crowd frustrations out when he overpowered to Kyrgios. He was furious when they booed/siuuued him between first and second serves and said those involved had low IQs. He asked for respect, but got none.

Despite being the top seed in the tournament, he might endure a rough ride if the Kyrgios crowd hangs around.

The atmosphere in Kyrgios' first two matches was as far removed from tennis traditions as you could possibly get. The heaving festival at the round-one demolition of Liam Broady and then the loss to Medvedev crossed the line from passionate support to over-the-top hooliganism.

Tennis traditionalists say it should be sophisticated. A gentleman's game where the only sound you hear during points is the players groaning or strings pinging. It's probably why Kyrgios has rankled opponents and spectators alike wherever he has played since starting his career.

He openly says he wants to entertain, putting that as the priority ahead of any desire to win a major tournament. He ignites and encourages support from the crowd, but then derides them when they stray from the boundaries he feels they should stay within.

It's why Kyrgios is unmissable. We've all channel surfed during the Australian Open when those boring games are on. Some of them predictable, some of them just not capable of moving the needle on the excitement metre.

It's hard to turn off when Kyrgios is on. You don't know if he's going to snatch a beer from someone in the stands and drink between points or scream in frustration because they moved too early/too late/too fast/too slow. It's sporting theatre that sometimes crosses the line, but people enjoy the shift away from the vanilla robotic athlete.

This is the challenge for tennis officials, because the fans who stay engaged for the quieter matches are the ones who turn off when the yahooing begins. Can the sport, capture both without watching some from both sides walk away.

"I thought the atmosphere was awesome. That's what sport is," Kyrgios said. "You've got the most entertaining player playing in his home slam on Rod Laver. You'd expect the crowd to be like that.

"I can understand it's a gentleman's game but it's about time people embraced some sort of different energy in this sport, otherwise it will die out. It's just that simple."

Maybe not so simple. Tennis has outlasted the bad boys or entertainers, and isn't raking in millions of dollars in broadcast revenue because of the noise in the stands. We'll find out in the coming days if the siuuuing yahoo brigade rolls in or rolls out to let normal tennis protocol resume. Then we'll know if it was entertaining, or an assault on the senses.