Nick Kyrgios ‘very thankful’ for Andy Murray after mental health struggles
Nick Kyrgios has opened up about his mental health struggles while playing on the ATP Tour and thanked Andy Murray for reaching out to him during this time.
Kyrgios has suffered with a variety of different injuries in 2023, which has meant that the Australian has only played one match for the entirety of the year in Stuttgart.
The 2022 Wimbledon finalist did make an appearance at the recent ATP Finals, but in a different role as a commentator for Tennis Channel.
And now the 28-year-old has opened up about his previous mental health struggles in an interview with Piers Morgan.
“It was pretty dark to be honest,” revealed Kyrgios. “I won tournaments on the professional tour, drinking every night, self-harming, burning things on my arm, cutting myself for fun. It became an addiction of pain. I hated myself. I hated waking up and being Nick Kyrgios.”
The former No.13 also spoke about the role that Murray has played in his life, with the Brit reportedly alerting Kyrgios’ manager about the self-harm that the Aussie was inflicting on himself.
And Kyrgios has revealed how thankful he is for Murray, “Andy was always a big supporter of me. As soon as I came on the tour, he kind of saw a work in progress and took me under his wing. Then he realised later in my career that I don’t think I was coachable or I was on my own path, but he was always someone that was looking out for me.
“He saw it [the self-harm] and he said, ‘What’s that on your arm?’ It was pretty bad at that stage. Andy obviously was trying to give me advice on it. But I was just so stuck in my ways at that time that I didn’t listen. Obviously I’m very thankful. I thank him a lot.”
"He took me under his wing… I thank him a lot."
Nick Kyrgios tells Piers Morgan how Andy Murray helped him with mental health and self harm struggles.
Watch the full interview on tonight's Uncensored at 8pm (UK). @NickKyrgios | @andy_murray | @piersmorgan | #PMU pic.twitter.com/VYpAdQBVKL
— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) December 1, 2023
Kyrgios then went onto talk about how he has used his previous struggles to help others, “I feel like I’ve helped so many people after I opened up about it and put it on social media. I’ve almost been a beacon for people who are struggling. When they feel like they’re overwhelmed and they’re going towards drinking, drugs and stuff, they open up and they feel like I’m relatable.”
He continued, “That’s been the most powerful thing in my career; people coming to me with genuine issues. They send me photos in my Instagram, direct messages, self-harming and genuinely wanting to commit suicide.
“I have conversations with these people. Sometimes I’ve had phone calls with these people. That’s making a real difference and I’m just really proud.”
Inside the baseline…
It is unclear as to when Kyrgios will be returning to the tennis court, but it is clear that he is still having a big impact off it. Although he can often be a controversial figure for his behaviour and outspoken nature, there is no doubt that this is Kyrgios using his platform for good to show the importance of mental health and to show others that you can come through difficult periods of your life.
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