Nick Kyrgios' ex-girlfriend says she was "unable to stomach food for months" after the tennis ace pushed her to the ground in Canberra's south and left her feeling traumatised.
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The 27-year-old sports star faced a packed ACT Magistrates Court on Friday and pleaded guilty to a common assault charge after abandoning an attempt to have it dismissed on mental health grounds.
While the charge was proven, Kyrgios ultimately received a non-conviction order.
Kyrgios, who hobbled into court on crutches following recent surgery on a knee injury that forced him out of last month's Australian Open, answered "yes" when magistrate Beth Campbell asked if he admitted assaulting Chiara Passari in January 2021.
Prior to Kyrgios pleading guilty, prosecutor Elizabeth Wren told the court last year's beaten Wimbledon men's singles finalist had a "loud verbal argument" with the victim outside her Kingston apartment on the night in question.
Kyrgios, who was in a relationship with Ms Passari at the time, called an Uber in an attempt to go home.
When it arrived and Ms Passari stood in the doorway to prevent the rideshare vehicle leaving, Kyrgios told her to "leave me the f--- alone" and "just f---ing piss off".
When this did not defuse the situation, Kyrgios grabbed her by the waist and moved her out of the way.
Ms Passari almost immediately returned to standing in the doorway.
Kyrgios told her "I'm serious, I'm going to", then pushed her by the shoulders with enough force that she fell onto the brick pavement.
Kyrgios then remarked "seriously" before leaving in the Uber as Ms Passari, whose knee was grazed when she fell, cried on the ground.
When the pair met at a cafe the next day to discuss the issue, Ms Passari surreptitiously recorded Kyrgios apologising to her.
The matter was formally reported to police 11 months later, and Kyrgios was eventually summonsed to face the charge.
In court on Friday, Kyrgios initially sought to have the charge dismissed on mental impairment grounds.
His lawyer, Michael Kukulies-Smith, called evidence from psychologist Sam Borenstein, who said the tennis star had endured "very black periods" that involved thoughts of self-harm, and impulsive and reckless behaviour.
Mr Borenstein diagnosed Kyrgios with a major depressive disorder but said the 27-year-old had been "progressing very well" in his treatment.
While Kyrgios was a bit depressed about his recent surgery and withdrawal from his home Grand Slam tournament, Mr Borenstein said the "very open" sportsman was acknowledging his feelings and learning to deal with them appropriately.
"He understands that he's vulnerable to [mental health] episodes, which motivates him to continue to engage with psychological treatment," Mr Borenstein said.
At the conclusion of Mr Borenstein's evidence, Mr Kukulies-Smith said the psychologist's testimony made it clear that, despite Kyrgios' past, the 27-year-old's symptoms would no longer meet the necessary definition for a mental impairment.
The mental health application was accordingly abandoned and the guilty plea entered, with Mr Kukulies-Smith instead asking for a non-conviction order.
Mr Kukulies-Smith described the assault as an isolated incident, highlighting the fact there had been no repeat of it in the two years since it occurred.
He tendered numerous references, including one from Kyrgios' current partner, Costeen Hatzi, who held no concerns about her safety around the tennis star.
The defence lawyer also noted Kyrgios' unsuccessful attempts to extricate himself from the situation before the assault, describing the push as "an out-of-character action" for which his client had expressed genuine remorse.
Kyrgios' actions, he noted, had also been subject to enormous media scrutiny.
Ms Wren read to the court a victim impact statement written by Ms Passari, who described feeling "betrayed" by Kyrgios.
Ms Passari also wrote that she had become incapable of maintaining romantic relationships with men because of the "trauma" associated with the assault.
Ms Campbell mused that it seemed "difficult to attribute all of those things to a push".
The magistrate said while it was to Kyrgios' credit that he had initially tried to extricate himself from the argument, he then "reacted poorly in the heat of the moment" and committed "a single act of stupidity".
"It's an unfortunate incident, and [Ms Passari] was clearly very distressed by the matter," Ms Campbell said.
Ultimately, the magistrate found it a "straightforward" decision to dismiss the charge without conviction, saying she would have reached the same conclusion in the case of any young man with similar circumstances.
"You're a young man," Ms Campbell told Kyrgios. "You just happen to hit a tennis ball particularly well."
In a statement issued following the conclusion of court proceedings, Kyrgios said he was grateful to Ms Campbell for the decision.
"I was not in a good place when this took place and I reacted to a difficult situation in a way I deeply regret," the men's world no.20 tennis star said.
"I know it wasn't OK and I'm sincerely sorry for the hurt I caused.
"Mental health is tough. Life can seem overwhelming. But I've found that getting help and working on myself has helped me to feel better and to be better.
"I can never thank Costeen, my family and friends enough for helping me through this process. I now plan to focus on recovering from injury and moving forward in the best way possible."
