Nick Kyrgios labels retirement rumours as ‘garbage’
Nick Kyrgios has hit back at rumours that he is nearing the end of his career, following an interview where the Australian discussed his post-tennis options.
Kyrgios has only played one match in the past 15 months, losing in straight sets to Yibing Wu in Stuttgart, after struggling with knee, ankle and wrist injuries.
The 2022 Wimbledon finalist has been exploring other avenues in the meantime, including commentating for EuroSport and ESPN during the Australian Open.
And he has discussed his future aspirations when speaking to The Age, “It’s a conversation that needed to be had. I’m at a crossroads in my career and have reached a point where life after tennis is a prospect that excites me.”
Kyrgios continued, “It’s why my manager brought it up. He said, ‘This could be you from now on if you want it to be’. I could travel the world making really good money commentating on the sport, doing things like I am now with my talk show interviewing guys like Gordon Ramsay and Mike Tyson.
“That’s a life people wish they had. Even the players on the circuit would love to be doing what I am doing now, but they have a different way of thinking.”
The line that got lots of people talking from Kyrgios was, “There is a part of me that knows my time in the sport may be over. And I’m okay with that”.
However, the 28-year-old has now responded to these rumours on Instagram, making it very clear that his career is far from over.
“Attention…I am not retiring,” announced Kyrgios. “Please don’t spread this garbage. I’m coming back and will be lighting up courts soon.”
“I have woken up today and realised about some articles going around and saying that I am retired and that I’m not going to play anymore. I just want to just clear it up, it’s absolute nonsense.”
The Aussie concluded, “Yes, the last year has been tough with injury, my knee, my wrist, but I’m hungry as ever, constantly rehabbing, in the gym. Part of the reason why I am commentating and doing all these things around AO [Australian Open] is to still feel that fire and still be a part of it. So I still wanted to let everyone know, all my fans I’m coming back, stay tuned, but there’s plenty left in the tank. Don’t stress.”
It is still unclear as to when Kyrgios will officially be returning, with the seven-time title winner still on commentary duty for the remainder of his home major.
Inside the baseline…
It must have been a very frustrating past 15 months for Nick Kyrgios, who has faced setback after setback in terms of injuries after the best year of his career. Kyrgios was never likely to play late into his thirties, so it would be surprising if he had too many years left in his career, but the Aussie has made it clear that there is still some fire in his belly to return to the matchcourt.
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