Nick Kyrgios has often divided opinion with his on-court antics throughout his career.
Kyrgios did not compete in singles at the Australian Open, but still played in both the men’s and mixed doubles events.
The former Wimbledon finalist played in the men’s doubles tournament alongside Thanasi Kokkinakis, who struggled physically alongside Kyrgios in a first round defeat.
Kyrgios also played mixed doubles with Leylah Fernandez, and a Grand Slam champion they beat has revealed what she thought of the Australian’s behavior.
Desirae Krawczyk explains how she found playing Nick Kyrgios
Desirae Krawczyk is a four-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, and was bidding to win the only major title she is missing at the Australian Open alongside partner Neal Skupski.
Despite having three consecutive match points, Krawczyk and Skupski were beaten by Kyrgios and Fernandez, 6(6)-7 6-4 [12-10].
Nick Kyrgios is good for tennis – Prove me wrong!
Kyrgios and Fernandez were also out of the tournament after their second round match, and Krawczyk has now revealed how she found playing against them on The Players’ Box Podcast.
Although she lost the match, Krawczyk called it a ‘very entertaining match’ and claimed that Kyrgios was ‘actually pretty respectful’.
It is not the first experience they have of being on court together, having also played alongside each other at Wimbledon in 2019, but Krawczyk admitted she prefers playing with Kyrgios rather than against him.
“Neal and I played against Nick Kyrgios and Leylah. That was a very entertaining match actually,” said Krawczyk.
“I did not know what to expect. Obviously he is quite the showman! It was really rowdy and I went out there and was like it’s not going to be that bad. Then I got out there and I was like I have never been in an environment like this and I was like woah.
“But to be honest he did a good job. He wasn’t trying to get the crowd all riled up. He was actually pretty respectful. I have played with him once, but not against him. And I would definitely rather play with him than against him!
“We lost in a nail-biter, sadly. But I did ace him, so that was my win and it was so satisfying. After the match I told him that I didn’t win but I aced you and he was like ‘oh no’. It was fun!”
What is next for Nick Kyrgios after the Australian Open?
There is a lot of uncertainty currently hanging over the future of Kyrgios, who has struggled with knee, wrist and foot injuries in recent years.
This has meant that Kyrgios has only played seven singles matches since 2022, and he has lost six of them.
As a result, Kyrgios has admitted that he is not far away from retiring, but it is not currently clear as to when that could be.
Kyrgios chose not to play singles at the Australian Open this year, but insisted that he was feeling fit, but just not ready to play best-of-five set matches.
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There has been no suggestion about which tournament Kyrgios could play next, the sunshine double of Indian Wells and the Miami Open seems a realistic possibility.
Kyrgios won his first singles match since 2022 at the Miami Open last year, and could return to the Masters 1000 tournament in search of that winning feeling once again.
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