Nick Kyrgios has taken a swipe at Australian fans after losing to world number 370 Denis Shapovalov at the Rogers Cup in Canada.

Beaten by the up-and-coming Canadian on his own turf, Kyrgios was asked at the post-match press conference whether he had any advice for 17-year-old Shapovalov.

“I think the Canadians support their athletes a little better than the Australians do,” Kyrgios replied.

“So, I think he’s going to do great.”

Asked to explain the comment, the young gun simply said: “I think it speaks for itself.”

The ATP adolescent

Kyrgios was visibly upset throughout the press conference and answered a number of questions with a flat “no”.

Kyrgios had 13 aces and 18 double faults in the match. Photo: Getty

Asked what was behind his 18 double faults for the game, Kyrgios appeared both shocked at the statistic while also apathetic.

“Geez I didn’t know I had that many double faults, that’s really bad.

“I guess I just have to practise more.”

The world No.19 was at his most generous when talking about Shapovalov’s potential.

“He’s coming off one of the best results of his career and he’s got a great future.

“I’m really looking forward to see how he’s going to progress into the seniors and transition. But, you know, he’s a top player.”

‘I don’t want to be here’

Recently, Kyrgios fans have been concerned at the once-enthusiastic player’s apparent lack of love for the game.

Sportnet journalist Caroline Cameron tweeted that she heard Kyrgios saying “This is a joke”, “I can’t play” and “I don’t want to be here”, at various stages of the first set.

Nick Kyrgios quotes from 1st set: "This is a joke." "I can't play." "I don't want to be here." In no particular order.

— Caroline Cameron (@SNCaroline) July 25, 2016

The young gun has previously publicly stated that tennis is not his first love, and he would rather be a professional basketballer.

Kyrgios has been criticised for not having a coach and for openly admitting he often doesn’t train for entire weeks at a time.

Lately, it seems his new obsession has been the augmented reality game Pokémon Go, which has been occupying his Twitter feed.

After his loss, world No.388 Philip Bester took a veiled swipe at Kyrgios, tweeting that Shapovalov had proved to be a “rare Pokémon” he could not “catch” – or beat.

Unsurprisingly, Kyrgios retaliated with a joke about Bester’s ATP ranking.

“Big tweet for someone ranked 388”, he wrote.

big tweet for someone ranked 388

— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) July 26, 2016