Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has said the chances of him travelling to Europe later this year are ‘slim to none’ as he hints at the possibility of shutting down his season.
The former top 20 player has said he is reluctant to travel due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic which has brought the ATP Tour to a halt for more than five months. Kyrgios was one of the first players to announce that he would not be playing at the US Open due to the virus. Speaking with Wide World of Sports on Tuesday, the 25-year-old has almost certainly ruled himself out of playing in Europe this year and therefore the French Open in September.
“There’s a very slim chance I will play in Europe, almost none. It’s slim to none to be honest,” he said.
“I think I’m going to use this time to stay at home. I’m going to respect everyone that tried to do no wrong during this time. I’m just going to act responsibly and wait until I think there are better circumstances to play.”
Should Kyrgios stick to his words, he will not be playing another ATP tournament this year. Due to the pandemic, the Asia swing of the Tour has been practically wiped out after the Chinese government banned hosting international events not related to Olympic qualifying. Japan has also cancelled their events.
Earlier this week the US Open suffered a blow with Rafael Nadal withdrawing. A move Kyrgios said he ‘wasn’t surprised’ by given the clay season following shortly after. Nadal is targeting his 13th French Open title this year and has won more clay-court titles than any other player in the Open Era.
“I wasn’t necessarily surprised by Rafa’s decision. I think he’s more eyeing the French Open and I think if I was to play, I would definitely rather go to Europe at this time of year with everything going on,” Kyrgios commented.
Known for his outspoken comments, Kyrgios has once again stood by his criticism of some of his rivals. The most well known being related to the Adria Tour, which was co-funded by Novak Djokovic and cancelled early following an outbreak of COVID-19. Organisers of the event were under fire for a lack of social distancing among other things.
Kyrgios himself is no stranger to controversy and has been issued to a suspended ban for unsportsmanlike conduct on the Tour. Although he dismisses that his comments are hypercritical because his actions were not ‘putting lives at risk.’
“Their behaviour throughout this time, I don’t think has been great at all. Especially coming from some of our leaders of the sport,” Kyrgios states.
“On top of our game they’re supposed to be setting an example for the rest of the tour, and them coming back at me with behaviour that I’ve done on court, I mean it just shows their intellectual level to be honest.
“Putting lives at risk, it’s not really comparable.”
Kyrgios is currently ranked 40th in the world and has won six ATP titles. So far in his career he has made more than $8 million in prize money. For the foreseeable future he will be relishing his time away from the Tour.
“I’m going to use this time to stay at home … train, be with my family and friends, and act responsibly and wait until I think it’s best,” he concluded.
