Nick Kyrgios had admitted this year’s Australian Open will likely be the last time he plays singles at Melbourne Park.
The 29-year-old – hampered by an abdominal injury – bowed out in the first round at John Cain Arena, losing in straight sets to Britain’s Jacob Fearnley.
Kyrgios was never really in the match, with his serve and range of movement clearly hindered by his injury.
The Australian had returned for his first grand slam match since US Open 2022 and he revealed his despondence at his body falling apart once again.
MORE: Nick Kyrgios vs. Jacob Fearnley score, result as Aussie star bombs out of Australian Open
Kyrgios explained that he thinks it’s unlikely he will ever compete in the Australian Open singles again because of his persistent injuries.
He also said that he wasn’t enjoying tennis with the battle he was having against his body.
“Yeah, I mean, realistically I can’t really see myself probably playing singles again here, so… Yeah, it was special,” Kyrgios said in his post-match press conference.
“Like taking that in, it was pretty good. It was good, yeah. So yeah, I mean, look, I knew that I have doubles, so I kind of was taking everything in tonight in those moments. It was, yeah, nuts.”
Kyrgios continued: “I mean, my wrist surgery was 16 months ago, so… I’ve put in a lot of work. I think it was, like, I didn’t play a Grand Slam for 800-something days, 859 days or something.
“I continued to stay motivated through all those days when I was watching everyone else play.
“It’s not enjoyable for me to go out there and not think tactically, enjoying the atmosphere, where am I going to hit the ball.
“It’s like what am I doing to manage my body, this is painful, I can’t do this because this hurts. That’s not tennis to me. That’s not sport. I’m happy to play through a bit of discomfort.
“When it gets to a point of — I’m one of the biggest servers on tour and I’m getting outserved tonight. My average serve speed was beneath 200. I mean, Nick Kyrgios without his serve is probably not — I’m not a threat to many players.”
Despite the bleak outlook for his singles future, Kyrgios committed to playing doubles with Thanasi Kokkinakis at the Australian Open, hoping to reprise their partnership that won the doubles title in 2022.
