“I have nothing against the kid at all, never have,” Philippoussis said.“I’ve actually always supported him, that’s something he knows . . . Do I agree with everything he does on the court? Absolutely not. But we have a lot of similarities in our games. He’s in the final of Wimbledon. I was there 19 years ago, I wish him all the best. He has the game to go all the way.”The statement comes after Australian tennis great Pat Cash said he too supported Kyrgios but the tennis ace needed to tone down his on-court antics, which, in his opinion, were designed to intimidate and manipulate umpires and opponents.“When John McEnroe and Pat Cash say he went too far, I think it is fair to say he probably did,” Cash said referring to Kyrgios’s controversial showdown with Stefanos Tsitsipas.Kyrgios takes on Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon Men’s Final on Sunday night.“Nick is a super talent and he deserves to be chasing for grand slam titles at the end of the tournament,” Cash said.“This is his best (career) result so far, but it would be sad to see somebody with that much talent not fulfil his potential and I think that is frustrating for many people.”Asked if Kyrgios could pull off a stunning and most unexpected victory at Wimbledon Cash said: “Absolutely, he has got it in him to do it.“Can he do it? That is another story. That is the challenge of a tennis player, you can have all the talent in the world, but it is another thing actually doing it.“I think this is a good chance as he is going to have in his career to go all the way.”It is 35 years since Cash won the Wimbledon Men’s Singles title in 1987.“It definitely does not feel like 35 years ago,” Cash said.“I am at the tournament every year, I still travel on the tour coaching, play some legends events, but they are getting fewer and fewer, so it has gone very quickly and I am just trying to enjoy every moment.”Sporting his mullet and chequered headband, Cash’s victory over Ivan Lendl is remembered in part for his, at the time, groundbreaking clamber into the stands to embrace his team and family straight after his victory.His actions, which were seen as bold and usual, at the time have now become commonplace in the game.“I was the first one to have the idea, or the nerve, to do that, but for me the most important thing was to share the moment with my family, with my team,” he said.“The new thing on the sporting circuit at that time was to have a team, to have your own private team, which of course we see lots now, but back then it wasn’t. “We had been through a lot. I was a young father at 21, I was travelling on the road with my trainer and nannies and my partner, and it was my way of going up and saying ‘thank you for all your support’ and I think people realised that was just a natural way to celebrate and now that somebody broke the ice others followed.”Cash, 57, is the new ambassador for Advanced Hair Studio and over the past 12 months has been improving his thatch with the Advanced Laser Therapy Program and Stem Cell infused PRP procedure. Cash was encouraged to deal with his hair issues by his close friend Shane Warne.
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