Nick Kyrgios and Novak Djokovic got their doubles partnership off to a dream start with an opening win at the Brisbane International.
Kyrgios felt good in practice ahead of the tournament, having been sidelined since June 2023 with various injuries.
Djokovic predicted he would have fun with Kyrgios, and that is exactly what happened inside Pat Rafter Arena.
The Serbian and Australian combined expertly to defeat Alexander Erler and Andreas Mies 6-4, 6-7(4), 10-8 at the Brisbane International.
Kyrgios and Djokovic now turn their focus to the singles event, where they will return to Pat Rafter Arena for back-to-back matches.
Nick Kyrgios surprised by Novak Djokovic in their Brisbane International win
The pair were in high spirits after their men’s doubles first round win, with Djokovic saying on court: “I want to thank Nick for playing.
“He said the other day it should be a pleasure to play with him. It is. It is a pleasure. I am glad to share the court with him on his comeback.
“I haven’t played that many doubles matches in my life, particularly the last five years, so whatever Nick was saying I was following actually.”
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Kyrgios then added: “I was actually surprised that he doubted himself a little bit in some moments. I was like brother you are the greatest of all time, go for it and do what you have got to do!
“For me I was just looking around at all the fans in this beautiful stadium. This injury has been brutal for me so I wasn’t taking any of this for granted.
“I don’t know how many Aussie summers I have got left so I was just looking around and loving the energy.
“We promised we were going to do this one time before he goes or I go, so I am just glad we are still around.”
Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios leave Australian fans wowed
There was unsurprisingly plenty of excitement around the star duo ahead of their match together, particularly given that they haven’t always enjoyed such a strong relationship.
But there were no signs of any past friction on the court, with both Kyrgios and Djokovic producing a handful of phenomenal shots.
They also worked very well as a team, but it was the likes of Djokovic’s around-the-net winner and Kyrgios’s tweener that really got the crowd going.
The Serbian top seed will now be looking to upset those fans when he takes on Australian Rinky Hijikata in his singles opener.
Kyrgios meanwhile has a very tricky test on his singles return, with the home favourite drawn against French rising star Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
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