Meet Nick Kyrgios, the 24-year-old bad boy of tennis whose talent and antics make him the most frustrating and compelling players in the sport
Nick Kyrgios is one of the most complicated and controversial stars in all of tennis. He may be more physically gifted than any other player, with a rare combination of power, speed, and finesse.
However, Kyrgios' personality often gets in the way of his talent. He's as known for his meltdowns on the court and occasional brash behavior as he is for his skill.
For much of his career, Kyrgios has waffled between moments of individual brilliance and befuddling breakdowns.
His meltdowns at matches have become common occurrences, whether it's smashing racquets...
... Or trash-talking fans, opponents, or chair umpires.
Growing up in Australia, Kyrgios had a natural skill for the game. At 14 years old, he chose tennis over basketball (more on that later) because he had a better chance at making it professionally in tennis.
Kyrgios said he was overweight growing up because he ate too much. As a result, he learned how to hit deft shots and guess where his opponents' shots would land so he could win matches without expending energy.
Source: New York Times
Kyrgios joined a national tennis training center at 15 years old and moved away from home. A local coach who watched Kyrgios said of his skill, "His arm was so fast, it was like he was playing with a toothpick."
Sources: New York Times, The New Yorker
Kyrgios' rise through the ranks was quick. He won his first amateur grand slam at 17 years old at the Australian Open, winning the tournament without dropping a set.
Over the next two years, Kyrgios gradually climbed up the world rankings. His breakout moment arguably came at Wimbledon in 2014, when he beat Rafa Nadal, then the world No. 1, in four sets to reach the quarter-finals.
Wimbledon 2015 was another breakout moment for Kyrgios, for reasons both good and bad. Kyrgios played well beating eighth-ranked Milos Raonic in the Round of 32 to reach the Round of 16.
However, while facing Richard Guasquet with the quarter-finals on the line, Kyrgios melted down.
Kyrgios was served with a code violation for cursing. After he lost the game, he then tanked his way through the next game, blatantly not trying to return Gasquet's serves.
He also got in trouble for changing his socks too slowly.
He eventually lost the match.
Kyrgios got in trouble again in 2015 at the Montreal Masters when he told his opponent, Stan Wawrinka, that fellow tennis player Thanasi Kokkinakis had slept with Wawrinka's girlfriend.
After the match, Kyrgios explained it by saying: "[Wawrinka] was getting lippy with me ... I just said it."
Wawrinka expressed his outrage via Twitter, and Kyrgios was later fined $25,000 and suspended for 28 days.
He climbed the rankings in 2016, getting as high as 14th in the world. He then tanked another match at the Shangai Masters, even asking the umpire to call the match so he could go home.
At the 2019 Mexican Open, Kyrgios took part in a wild match against Rafa Nadal.
Kyrgios wanted to forfeit because he felt sick but told trainers that the media would rip him for it.
As the match went on, in front of a pro-Nadal crowd, Kyrgios told the fans to "shut the f--- up."
Kyrgios eventually battled back to win the match. Upon winning, he exchanged an icy handshake with Nadal, then taunted the crowd. Nadal later criticized Kyrgios for his lack of respect.
Most recently, he was kicked out of the Italian Open after he cursed and threw a chair onto the court.
These moments frustrate the tennis world because Kyrgios is also capable of greatness. He's one of the most impressive shot-makers on tour.
He has a thing for tweeners...
And no-look shots (even if they don't always work)...
He has unreal touch...
He's one of the most best servers on tour. He's fifth in serve rating and third in aces per match.
Source: ATP
Kyrgios has also been known to bust out a tricky underhand serve, which some in the tennis world view as cheap. Kyrgios said too many players are too afraid to try something new on the court.
Source: No Challenges Remaining
Kyrgios has long been viewed as the-next-big-thing in tennis.
Brad Gilbert, an ESPN analyst and former Andre Agassi coach, told the New Yorker in 2017: "I think he has the most talent of anyone twenty-five and under. If you put the total package around him, and he embraced that, I would be shocked if he didn't win multiple slams and become top two in the world."
Source: The New Yorker
There seem to be several issues plaguing Kyrgios, however. He doesn't have a coach, having moved on from several coaches and admitting he doesn't take well to coaching.
Kyrgios has lacked motivation and maturity, at times.
He has admitted to getting home-sick on the tour, saying he misses his family, friends, and dogs.
One issue that has plagued Kyrgios — he likes basketball more than tennis. He has said so himself!
"I don't really like the sport of tennis that much. I don't love it ... But I just love basketball, I love the sport. I always have. I try when I'm on the road with tennis not to watch too many basketball videos and stuff like that, to keep me focused, but it's tough."
Source: Independent
Unlike many other top athletes, he isn't motivated by others' success. He said in 2017 that watching then-20-year-old Alexander Zverev win a tournament didn't motivate him.
"I'm incredibly happy for him,"Kyrgios said. "But I don't know if it motivates me. I didn't feel, as soon as he won, Man, I'm going to go train, or anything. He won a tournament. It's good, but it's more weeks on the road where we're going to play tennis matches, and that's it."
Source: The New Yorker
Andy Murray has become a mentor to Kyrgios. But Kyrgios turned down a training trip with Murray because he feared the amount of work they would do. "That was a quick no for me, because I know he’s going to be training four, five hours a day. We were probably going to have to be doing these protein shakes."
Source: The New Yorker
Kyrgios said he looks up to French tennis player Gael Monfils. Monfils has had a successful career, but, to some, has not lived up to his potential. There are parallels between the two players.
Source: The New Yorker
Kyrgios said he thinks consistency is a great skill ... but he's not sure he'll ever have it. "If I had that, Jesus, I'd probably have a couple grand slams already," he said.
Source: No Challenges Remaining
Kyrgios has even questioned his own work ethic, telling Ben Rothenberg: "It's so hard to find people that just wanna like hang out on a daily basis and just be so chilled and not take it so seriously. Everyone is so professional. And like, compared to me, for sure I do the least amount of work out of the top 100."
Source: No Challenges Remaining
Kyrgios said he was out partying for the entirety of the 2019 Mexican Open — and still won the tournament.
"I went out every night," Kyrgios said, adding he was going to sleep around 4 a.m.
"I was playing, and I was packing my going-out clothes in my tennis bag ... It was insane. I was jet-skiing and partying and I won a tournament. I'm just like, 'How?'"
Source: No Challenges Remaining
Kyrgios said he's not sure how long he'll be able to play tennis for because he plays a lot of basketball and doesn't take great care of his body.
Source: No Challenges Remaining
Kyrgios is nothing if not brutally honest. That includes his opinions of other players on tour. For instance, Kyrgios trashed Fernando Verdasco as "the most arrogant person ever."
"He doesn't say hello, he thinks he's so good, he thinks he's God's gift. Dude, your backhand's pretty average and let's be honest, you hit a ball over a net."
Source: No Challenges Remaining
He also called Novak Djokovic "cringeworthy" and said Djokovic tries too hard to be liked by everybody.
Kyrgios did praise Djokovic's play, however.
Source: No Challenges Remaining
He also called out Rafa Nadal, calling Nadal "salty" and the polar opposite of himself.
Source: No Challenges Remaining
Kyrgios also called out Angelique Kerber in 2019 for what he thought was two-faced behavior.
After Kerber lost to Bianca Andreescu at the Miami Open, Kerber called Andreescu a "drama queen." Later on, she praised Andreescu on Twitter for winning the match, and Kyrgios tweeted, "Bruh you said she is a drama queen and then post this."
Kyrgios said he doesn't understand why he has to respect his opponents. He said: "I don’t understand why I have to respect them, like, automatically. All they do is literally hit a ball over the net."
Source: No Challenges Remaining
Kyrgios' agent, John Morris, who Kyrgios has called a friend, has said that the 24-year-old is a mystery, even to him.
Source: The New Yorker
Some think that Kyrgios' antics, lackadaisical attitude, and luke-warm attitude toward tennis is a cover for how he truly feels. Some think he desires to be great, but has trouble channeling it and is afraid to fail if he gives his best effort.
Source: The New York Times
Kyrgios said he's lucky to be able to simply "turn the tap on" when he needs to play his best tennis and believes he'll be able to do so for the next few years. The tennis world will be watching to see if Kyrgios ever changes, takes the game more seriously, and realizes his immense potential.
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