By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Monday, October 14, 2024
Former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios announces his comeback—and two main missions he aims to achieve.
Photo credit: Sarah Stier/Getty/US Open/USTA
As a player and analyst, Nick Kyrgios has long been a major multi-tasker.
The 29-year-old Kyrgios announced his tennis comeback aiming to achieve two main missions.
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Kyrgios strives win a maiden major title and silence his skeptics in the process.
The 2022 Wimbledon finalist says he believes he can win a Grand Slam singles title and knows mastering a major is the only way to quiet his critics.
“I am coming back because something is keeping me around the game,” Kyrgios told Australia’s News Corp Code Sports. “I have beaten pretty much every person that has been put in front of me, made a final of a Grand Slam, won a doubles title in a Grand Slam, won multiple titles and made money.
“But I think the one thing that is now on my target is a Grand Slam. I think that will be the only thing that will shut people up at the end of the day.”
The owner of seven ATP singles titles, Kyrgios has been sidelined by knee and wrist issues and has not played a Tour-level match since falling in the Stuttgart first round in June of 2023.
Since then, Kyrgios has returned to the Tour as a tennis television analyst, working for ESPN and Tennis Channel, and host of his popular Good Trouble podcast.
Still, the man coach Patrick Mouratoglou calls the game's best server, aims to launch his return playing an exhibition in December. Kyrgios plans to play the Abu Dhabi exhibition this December in preparation for the Australian Open, set for January 12-26, 2025.
Injury-induced inactivity has caused Kyrgios to drop from the ATP rankings, but the man who partnered buddy Thanasi Kokkinakis to win the 2022 Australian Open doubles crown would surely be line for a wild card from Tennis Australia.
The question is: Can Kyrgios regain his health, fitness, form and desire to travel the Tour, which he's admitted has caused him depression mental duress in the past being away from his family for prolonged periods.
In his last Grand Slam singles appearance, Kyrgios knocked off defending champion Daniil Medvedev to reach the 2022 US Open quarterfinals, losing to Karen Khachanov in five physical sets.
There's another reason Kyrgios cites for inspiring his "deep motivation" to play again: He believes it's open season on Slams.
Pointing to the fact Grand Slam king Novak Djokovic is 37 years old and coming off a season where he did not win a Slam and King of Clay Rafael Nadal is retiring after next month’s Davis Cup, Kyrgios says he sees the sport as “the most open it has ever been.”
A Kyrgios comeback in Melbourne would be major box office for the Australian Open.
AO Chief Executive Craig Tiley is confident we will see the outspoken Aussie and devoted Boston Celtics fan on court in Melbourne in January.
“Nick will be back,” Tiley told Australia's Channel 9 this month. “We know he’s out there practicing and preparing for the summer.
"He loves playing in Australia. We expect to see him back and we know he’s on track with that preparation.”