Nick Kyrgios has revealed he was left feeling ’emotional’ earlier this week after a new injury threw serious doubts over his hopes of a much-anticipated comeback at his home Grand Slam.
It’s been a long and gruelling road back to this point for the Australian tennis star, who has jumped through hoops in order to continue to play at the top level after a spate of injuries put his career on hold.
But in agonising circumstances, the 29-year-old announced this week he was pulling out of a doubles exhibition match alongside Novak Djokovic after he had sustained a grade one strain in his abdomen.
The seven-time ATP Tour winner is still yet to decide on whether he’ll be ready to play next week, admitting he had been back in training testing the injury.
And understandably, a disheartened Kyrgios spoke of his frustrations over the new injury woe during the Rooftop at QT summer campaign event.
‘Yeah, I mean it’s hard, we play tennis at the end of the day because we love it,’ Kyrgios told Daily Mail Australia.
Nick Kyrgios has opened up on an emotional period he had earlier this week after suffering a fresh new injury
The Aussie star had fought his way back from a tough wrist injury to be fit for the Australian Open but could still miss out due to the grade-one abdominal strain
Kyrgios also opened upon his troublesome wrist claiming that after the injury he didn’t think he could play again
‘I guess it’s about going out there, being active and just enjoying it and focusing on trying to win or trying to compete and now for me it’s just the focus has been load management. Injury here.
‘Niggle here. Ab strain, wrist reconstruction.
‘It’s like… it is what it is, I’m definitely towards the later stages of my career.
‘I’m not young anymore, so I understand that my body’s tired and it gets injured, but yeah, it’s definitely frustrating, you know.
‘I got emotional a couple of days ago just because I put in so much point to get back to this point.’
In October, Kyrgios had lifted the lid on what was motivating his comeback before claiming he felt he had ‘one or two years left’ at the top level.
But last week, he looked far from done, with tennis’ great entertainer dazzling fans at the Pat Rafter Arena alongside Djokovic in the men’s doubles.
The pair lit up the event with trick shots, dancing and their energetic on-court vibe.
Kyrgios returned to practise on Melbourne park earlier today, having also drawn Jacob Fearnley in the first round of the Australian Open
Rather shockingly, Kyrgios admitted he couldn’t even do some very simple tasks because of his wrist
Kyrgios would also enter the men’s singles event at the tournament but was knocked out by Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, going on to play three matches in three days.
‘Playing doubles with Novak in Brisbane, going toe-to-toe with one of the most confident players on tour [Perricard] and it’s just… it was hard for me,’ he added.
‘But another setback where it hinders my preparation and maybe puts me out. It’s like: “I just want to be able to play”.’
Kyrgios’ Australian Open schedule is still to be confirmed after he was drawn against unseeded star Jacob Fearnley in today’s draw.
Kyrgios will be hoping for a match later in the first few days of the event in order to give his abdomen more time to heal.
In recent years, Kyrigos has battled his way back from knee, ankle and wrist issues – the worst of the bunch, with the tennis superstar admitting that the injury and surgery had impacted his ‘standard of living’.
‘Seven months out of my wrist I actually, I didn’t think I was going to play again. I was still having pain,’ Kyrgios said.
‘I still have pain now like I can’t play and I’m never pain-free in my wrist but it’s to the point where I can play now.’
Kyrgios (left) and Djokovic (right) dazzled fans at the Brisbane International lest week
Rather shockingly, Kyrgios admitted he couldn’t even do some very simple tasks because of his wrist.
He added: ‘My standard of living was so bad with my wrist. ‘Like I couldn’t carry groceries, I couldn’t turn the doorknob, I couldn’t put salt in my food.
‘So when he told me: “The surgery was not for your tennis put that [tennis] to the back of your mind, this surgery will help you live again.
‘”And if you are somehow able to rehab yourself to a point of being able to play again that’s” No other tennis athlete’s gone through this surgery and the come back was just all an experiment, really.’
