Nick Kyrgios enjoyed a winning start to his tennis comeback, but has since hit a snag.
After all, having won in Stuttgart against Corentin Moutet, his subsequent loss to Sho Shimabukuro saw his run ended.
Then, when Kyrgios withdrew from the Halle Open, alarm bells started ringing.
Many feared that, with Wimbledon just around the corner, the Aussie had been dealt another hammer blow that might threaten his grass-court season.
Fortunately, Nick Kyrgios has since confirmed his continued fitness, despite having only been rewarded with a doubles wildcard for the upcoming Grand Slam.
Discussing his return to the sport, Rennae Stubbs offered her brutally honest verdict not just on his comeback, but on his career as a whole.
Rennae Stubbs thinks Nick Kyrgios will regret his tennis career
Speaking on the Rennae Stubbs podcast, when asked about the Kyrgios comeback, she admitted: “Look, I mean, you know how I feel about Nick.
“You know, I mean, I see this, like, five-year-old to ten-year-old boy who just wants to be controversial just to be important. You know, just to have people talking about him.
“But, you know, as far as his tennis is concerned, we know that he’s capable.
“You know, it was just, for people that had half of his talent, you know, it’s annoying, because we’re like, dude, you could have been so much better.
“So I think that for him, you know, the sad part is that he started to realise that over the last couple of years is that s—-. Like, injuries are bad, and you can’t just come back on a whim and not be practising hard and not be working out hard in the gym and expect to do well.
“And I think he probably… I am convinced that in ten to 20 years’ time, he’s going to look back at his career and regret a lot of things.
“So I’m happy that he’s back playing. He, you know, he got a win. So it’s like, I don’t know, we’ll see. You know, I just, I’m not this type of person that just gives someone c—- for the sake of it, you know?”
Wimbledon proven right by not giving Nick Kyrgios a singles wildcard
Before Wimbledon had announced their wildcards for the men’s draw, there had been much debate over which men would get the coveted spots.
After all, competition for places had arguably never been so fierce, with plenty of Brits likely expecting one, as well as global stars like Stan Wawrinka, Matteo Berrettini, Grigor Dimitrov, Gael Monfils and Kyrgios all hoping for the best.
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In the end, it was just Wawrinka and Dimitrov handed a Wimbledon wildcard from this five-man shortlist, thus leaving the rest disappointed.
However, given how Kyrgios was forced to withdraw from Halle after just two best-of-three-set matches, their choice has probably been justified.
His body is not ready for five-set tennis, and it may never be again. Hopefully he can enjoy a strong run in the doubles and at least return to the All England Club with some success.
