ATP fines Nick Kyrgios $16,500

Nick Kyrgios has been fined $16,500 on Thursday for violating the ATP Code of Conduct during his loss to German qualifier Mischa Zverev in the second round of the Shanghai Masters.

The ATP announced that the 21-year-old Australian would receive the maximum possible fine of $10,000 for showing a "lack of best efforts" in Wednesday's match, a $5,000 penalty for the verbal abuse of a spectator and a $1,500 fine for unsportsmanlike conduct.

After being booed following a lackluster performance against Zverev, Kyrgios took his frustration out on the fans in Shanghai. Kyrgios said in his post-match interview that he didn't owe the spectators anything and the fans could "just leave" if they don't like the way he conducted himself.

Kyrgios gave the fans reason to voice their displeasure during the brisk 48-minute match after tapping a soft serve over the net and walking toward his chair before the 29-year-old Zverev even returned the ball. Kyrgios also bypassed his chair on changeovers and waited impatiently for play to resume.

The actions didn't sit well with chair umpire Ali Nili, who took the 12th-seeded Kyrgios to task for his behavior in the first set.

"This is a professional tournament, you have to act like a professional," Nili said.

Kyrgios didn't mince words when asked in his post-match interview if the fans deserved a better performance.

"What does that even mean? I'm good at hitting a tennis ball at the net. Big deal. I don't owe them anything," he said. "If you don't like it, I didn't ask you to come watch. Just leave."

Wednesday's incident was not an isolated one for Kyrgios, who insulted Stan Wawrinka during a match in Montreal last year and was fined $12,500.