Nick Kyrgios has become the latest player to end their season early after confirming the reccurance of a hip injury.
The world No.20 crashed out in the second round of the European Open on Wednesday to Ruben Bemelmans. During the match, Kyrgios took a medical time out to receive treatment on his hip. An issue that has caused him trouble since the grass-court swing on the tour. At the Aegon Championships in June he sustained a heavy fall on the court, forcing him to retire from the tournament.
“Unfortunately due to the recurrence of my hip injury that I originally suffered at Queen’s, I am shutting down my season to make sure I can rehab and prepare as best as I can for the Australian summer,” Kyrgios said in a statement.
After pulling out of his first round encounter at Wimbledon, Kyrgios admitted that he is trying to avoid undergoing surgery. A point he emphasized once more on Thursday.
“‘I have played a huge amount of tennis since coming back from my hip injury in Washington and unless I want this to escalate to an injury that requires surgery, I need to listen to my body and my team.” He explained.
Kyrgios ends what has been a lacklustre season for him. Despite not winning a title, he broke new territory in Masters 1000 tournaments by reaching the final of the Cincinnati Open. He also produced four wins over three top-five players (Novak Djokovic twice, Rafael Nadal and Alexander Zverev).
There has also been disappointments for the Australian in 2017, who failed to progress beyond the second round at all four grand slam tournaments. At the Shanghai Masters, he was slammed with a £23,500 fine. Kyrgios swiftly quit his match against Steve Johnson after dropping the first set tiebreak, but later blamed a stomach bug. Officials fined him £7500 for unsportsmanlike conduct after walking off the court without attending a medical assessment. He was also docked £16,000 in first round prize money.
‘This year hasn’t been as successful as I would have liked, especially at the Slams, although it has been positive in some other areas.” Admitted Kyrgios.
“It’s been no secret that I have had some sad moments to deal with away from the court which have added to my disappointments throughout the year.”
The 22-year-old is the latest player to prematurely end their 2017 season. Joining the likes of Novak Djokovic, Kei Nishikori and Milos Raonic. Earlier in the day Tomas Berdych also confirmed he would play no more this year due to persistent back pain.
Kyrgios closes out 2017 with a win-loss record of 31-17.
https://twitter.com/NickKyrgios/status/921056207036669952
