Nick Kyrgios has declared that he will not be participating in the 2024 Australian Open, but instead will be present as a commentator, despite his notorious reputation in the sport.
The 28-year-old fan favorite, who was a finalist at Wimbledon in 2022, was not listed as a participant for the tournament on Wednesday night. However, Craig Tiley, the boss of the Australian Open, suggested that the wild and free-spirited player from Canberra would still be involved in some capacity.
Kyrgios, who recently made his debut as a commentator on the Tennis Channel, received a varied reaction. He has now utilized his newly created OnlyFans platform to inform his fans of his unexpected withdrawal.
“I regret to announce that I will not be participating in the 2024 Australian Open,” Kyrgios stated in a video. “Despite not being able to compete, I will still be present at the AO as a commentator. I have some exciting plans in store, so please stay tuned.”
The 28-year-old tennis player, previously ranked 13th in the world, revealed on Friday that he has become a member of the OnlyFans subscription service. He made the announcement on the divisive platform, which may divide fans even more as they view him as a wasted and exceptional talent.
In 2022, Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis became doubles champions at the Australian Open. However, due to multiple injuries, Kyrgios has not played much since October 2022. As of September 11 this year, his ATP ranking has dropped to No 192.
In the beginning of 2023, the 28-year-old was unable to participate in the Australian Open due to a left knee injury that required surgery. He did not compete in any of the four major tournaments during a disappointing season, with his only match being a 68-minute loss to China’s Yibing Wu in the first round of the Stuttgart tournament in June.
Kyrgios received widespread backlash for his sudden decision to withdraw from Wimbledon in the same month. Despite achieving his best grand slam result by reaching the 2022 final against Novak Djokovic, Kyrgios withdrew from the 2023 tournament the day before his first round match against David Goffin from Belgium, citing a wrist injury.
Unfortunately, there is news that his 2024 start will also be postponed due to an injury.
Kyrgios informed his supporters that he had faced a challenging year due to injuries, including knee surgery and returning to the game too quickly, which caused setbacks. He also mentioned dealing with wrist problems, making this a highly disappointing period for him.
He expressed sadness over the choice to pull out of the 2024 Australian Open.
“I have a lot of wonderful memories from playing there and I am eager to return to my peak performance and do it correctly. I just need a bit more time,” stated Kyrgios. “I was very close to winning a grand slam, so I want to ensure that my body has enough time to recover. Please be patient with me.”
Kyrgios had not competed in six months, making his participation in the Australian Open highly unlikely. Despite facing injuries, Rafael Nadal, Marin Cilic, Denis Shapovalov, Soonwoo Koon, Jiri Vesely, Milos Raonic, and Reilly Opelka all secured spots in the tournament by utilizing their protected rankings this week.
Tiley, the Australian Open manager, stated that the progress with Kyrgios is ongoing. He added that Kyrgios would be the most capable of evaluating his situation. Tiley also mentioned that Kyrgios will be present in some capacity during the tournament in January.
Source: theguardian.com
