Nick Kyrgios has confirmed that he will return to the Australian Open later this month, but only in the doubles tournament, following discussions with Tennis Australia.
Kyrgios, who reached the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park in 2015, had been in the mix of receiving a wildcard for his home Grand Slam. After being sidelined from the Tour for months due to injury, he returned to competitive action earlier this week at the Brisbane International, where he lost his opening match to Aleksandar Kovacevic in straight sets. This was his first singles match on the ATP Tour since March.
Leading up to his announcement, Kyrgios had told reporters that he shouldn’t be handed a pass into the Australian Open if he is unable to produce what he describes as the ‘Kyrgios experience.’ Essentially, he was saying that he will not take a wildcard unless he is in good enough shape to do so.
“After some good conversations with [Tennis Australia], I’ve made the call to focus on doubles for this year’s [Australian Open],” Kyrgios said on Friday. “I’m fit and back on court, but five-setters are a different beast and I’m not quite ready to go the distance yet.
The 30-year-old will instead play in the doubles event alongside Thanasi Kokkinakis. In 2022, the duo became the first all-Australian team to win the title for 25 years. They have been playing together in Brisbane this week, where they reached the second round.
“This tournament means everything to me but I’d rather give my spot to someone who’s ready to make their moment count,” Kyrgios continued. “It’s all building blocks and I’ll be back next year and pumped to compete. See you out there.”
Soon-to-be-retired Wawrinka gets green light
Meanwhile, former champion Stan Wawrinka has been handed a wildcard to play in the singles event to mark his last appearance at the Australian Open before retiring later this year. The Swiss won his first of three major titles in Melbourne in 2014 when he defeated Rafael Nadal in the final. He also reached the semi-finals in 2015 and 2017, as well as the quarter-finals in 2020. However, he has lost his opening match in his three most recent appearances
“Winning the Australian Open in 2014, my first Grand Slam title, is an absolute career highlight for me, so I’m incredibly grateful to receive this wildcard,” Tennis Australia quoted Wawrinka as saying.
“Some of my fondest tennis memories are from Melbourne and I truly feel a great connection to the city and to the fans.
“To have the chance to play the AO at the beginning of my final year on tour means the world to me. Thank you to Tennis Australia for the opportunity and I can’t wait to be back out on court at Melbourne Park.”
Wawrinka is currently playing at the United Cup alongside Belinda Bencic. At the tournament, he defeated Arthur Rinderknech before losing to Flavio Cobolli in three sets and then Sebastian Baez.
Jordan Thompson and Chris O’Connell have also been handed wildcards for the Australian Open, which will get underway on January 18th.
