Australian Open: Angry Nick Kyrgios mistakenly hits boy with ball, turns tears to smile

Jan. 25 (UPI) -- A frustrated Nick Kyrgios smacked a tennis ball into the stands and accidentally hit a boy during a doubles match at the Australian Open on Tuesday in Melbourne. He then made the crying child smile by giving him a racket.

Kyrgios and fellow Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis beat German Tim Putz and New Zealand's Michael Venus 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 in the quarterfinal match.

Kyrgios and Kokkinakis trailed 2-1 in the first set when Kokkinakis served to start the rally. The umpire called Kokkinakis for a let on the play, meaning he must replay the point.

Kyrgios responded to the sequence with an overhead return, which smacked off the opposite end of the court and flew into the stands.

Kyrgios grimaced when he realized that the ball drilled the boy in the stomach. He also waved to the boy, who appeared to be sitting with his mother. The boy held the ball and cried before Kyrgios reached into his bag, pulled out a racket and gifted it to the young fan.

The boy snatched the racket and smiled, and the match continued. After the match, Kyrgios shared a post on his Instagram story, which said the boy is OK and happy to receive the gift.

Kyrgios and Kokkinakis battle Horacio Zeballos of Argentina and Marcel Granollers of Spain in the men's doubles semifinals. The men's doubles final is at 5:30 a.m. EST Saturday in Melbourne.