It was a Christmas to remember for Nick Kyrgios this year, but not necessary for the reason many would have thought.
The two-time grand slam quarter-finalist spent part of the holiday season in the hospital. Kyrgios was bitten on his foot by a spider and had to undergo treatment on it at a local hospital in Canberra. The Australian player uploaded a photo of him with an intravenous drip attached to him with the caption ‘This spider bite outta control.’
“Got a spider bite on my foot. Christmas different every year,” Kyrgios posted on Instagram.
Whilst it has been less than ideal preparation ahead of the new season, the 23-year-old is on schedule to play at the Brisbane International. Kyrgios is the defending champion of the event. Last year he scored wins over Grigor Dimitrov and Ryan Harrison on route to the title.
Kyrgios, who is currently ranked 35th in the world, faces a potentially tricky run if he wants to win Brisbane for the second year running. Seeded eighth in the draw, he faces competition from the likes of Rafael Nadal and Kei Nishikori.
The former world No.13 hasn’t played a competitive match on the tour since withdrawing from the Kremlin Cup in October due to an elbow injury. During what has been a injury-stricken 2018, he only managed to feature in one final back at the start of the year. Although Kyrgios reached the semi-finals of events in London (Queen’s) and Stuttgart. Overall, he achieved a win-loss record of 25-13 to finish 35th in the year-end rankings. His lowest position at the end of a season since 2014.
During his time away from the court, Kyrgios confirmed that he was getting help with the mental side of his game. The Australian has a reputation for his temperamental behaviour on the court and at one point was slammed with a brief suspension for unsportsmanlike conduct. At The Queen’s Club in June he was fined $17,500 for ‘inappropriate behaviour.’
“I was obviously struggling with a couple of things on and off the court this year, so it hasn’t been easy,” Kyrgios told Australian newspaper the Canberra Times.
“But I’m starting to see some psychologists and trying to get on top of my mental health.
“I probably left it a little too long. But I’ve been doing that and I feel more open about talking about it, I don’t feel like I’ve got to hide that sort of stuff any more.”
The Brisbane International will get underway on Monday.
