Nick Kyrgios will soon make his return to the Australian Open, where he is playing doubles alongside Thanasi Kokkinakis.
Kokkinakis isn’t playing Australian Open singles, while Kyrgios ruled himself out of contention for a wildcard at the Grand Slam.
Both Australians have had their injury issues in recent times, but they are still planning on playing doubles at the Grand Slam.
It is a tournament they won in 2022, when Kyrgios and Kokkinakis beat Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell 7-5, 6-4 in the final.
The Australian Open is the best Grand Slam… discuss!
Nick Kyrgios expects Rod Laver Court to be ‘rocking’ in his doubles match
Standing in their way of potential Australian Open success first this year are Marc Polmans and Jason Kubler, but Kyrgios is expecting a big boost from the fans in that match.
As quoted by ESPN, he said: “Look, when me and Thanasi play, we’ve got this [Rod Laver Arena] place rocking, so it’ll be similar vibes.
“Honestly, I’m really excited to see what the stadium’s going to be like when me and TK are out there.”
The pair also linked up at the 2025 Australian Open, but were forced to retire during their opener against James Duckworth and Aleksandar Vukic.
More recently, Kyrgios and Kokkinakis won their Brisbane opener earlier this month before falling in the round of 16.
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Thanasi Kokkinakis makes promise to Australian Open fans
Despite his unfortunate injury struggles, Kokkinakis echoed Kyrgios’ message with an upbeat claim of his own.
He said: “Obviously, there’s going to be some high expectations, but the one thing that people can expect is we’re going to have fun. We’re going to be energetic, and we’re going to give it our all.
“I can’t guarantee a win like last time, but he’s [Kyrgios] a character and it’s always going to be fun going out there and playing with him. We’ll get the crowd up and about.”
It’s a bold statement from Kokkinakis, who will, of course, be aware that both Polmans and Kubler are also Australian.
It means the 2022 champions may have to battle hard to win over the entire crowd in Melbourne, although it shouldn’t be difficult given their much-loved nature on the court.
Both Kyrgios and Kokkinakis are showmen, and most fans will be desperate to witness a repeat of their memorable run on home soil four years ago.
Perhaps working against them, however, is the fact that their opponents can already fully focus on the doubles draw.
Qualifier Polmans failed to reach the Australian Open main draw, while Kubler lost in round one to Frances Tiafoe.
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