If you are going to do a job, then do it well, that's what most Australians are taught growing up.
So it's not surprising that when Nicky Kyrgios tanked his game in Shanghai last week, it instantly attracted widespread criticism.
But why would a sportsman of such talent, who has trained all his life to win and be the best, just want to lose a match like that?
UK sports psycholgist Chris Harwood, from the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences at Loughborough University, says tanking, or withdrawal of effort, is often a sign of someone under pressure.
They are not able to manage the stress that is placed upon them or the stress they place on themselves, according to Mr Harwood.
Former AIS sports psychologist Jeff Bond, who once worked with now-retired tennis champion Pat Cash, suggests that a person who throws a match has an empty tank.
They are "exhausted both physically and mentally".
Elite athletes like Kyrgios are often perfectionists. They know in their mind what the perfect match looks like and how to play it, but they rarely achieve it because they make mistakes.
They also hate to lose, which makes tanking such a paradox, Mr Bond says.
When some players know right from the outset of a game that they aren't going to do well, they will look for some sort of an excuse, such as an injury, or find an easy way out, Mr Bond says.
That easy way out in a lot of sports is the equivalent of tanking.
"In other words, you lose early in the tournament so that you can get out, try and recharge your batteries, and then face up to the next tournament."
Bond has worked with players who have tanked and admits it's "embarrassing" to watch, especially when you know how capable the athlete is.
"I saw a player tank so badly once that he deliberately set up shots, as Kyrgios did, to let the other player hit a winner and the player at the other end of the court was so bewildered by what was going on that he didn't know how to hit a winner and kept hitting the ball over the line, and the 'tanker' turned around and said to the coach 'What else can i do to help this bloke win?''
"It happens and it's a terrible thing but the reality is that some athletes just cannot be consistent," Mr Bond says.
