Rod Laver remains one of tennis’ greatest-ever players, and undoubtedly the best Australian man to have ever played the game.
Having won 11 singles Grand Slam titles and a five-year period of dominance over the world number one spot, he accomplished things that even the best in history have failed to.
With that in mind, his opinion remains highly relevant and useful even today, 46 years on since his 1979 retirement.
This is especially true when speaking about his fellow Aussies, with Nick Kyrgios a star example of a player he so desperately tried to advise early on in his career.
Rod Laver’s 2014 warning for Nick Kyrgios
In fact, in what must have been one of his first documented pieces of advice issued for the controversial starlet, he actually sent a warning to Kyrgios and the tennis world during his breakthrough tournament.
After all, he was keen to ensure that they did not get carried away with his remarkable run of form, which had catapulted him into the Wimbledon fourth round against all the odds.
Speaking ahead of the biggest match of his career to date, against Rafael Nadal, Laver was asked about whether Kyrgios should be aiming for a single-figure ranking and Grand Slam glory in the near future.
He responded: “That’s a mistake, it’s just people talking cheap news.
“Otherwise, he (Kyrgios) is going to think, ‘I don’t have to work as hard now’, and that’s sort of the reverse you want him to be in.
“He has to try and practice even more and even harder.”
When Nick Kyrgios stunned the tennis world by beating Rafael Nadal
At just 19 years of age, Kyrgios’ run to the Wimbledon fourth round in 2014 had already captured the imagination.
However, few thought he would get much further once he was drawn against the then world number one, Nadal.
It would have been a daunting task for anyone to overcome the Spaniard, let alone a youngster making his debut at Wimbledon.
Alas, the Aussie was unfazed and stormed into a two-sets-to-one lead, relying on his huge serve to see him through two tiebreaks.
He bamboozled Nadal with his patented bag of tricks and huge hitting, and thus became the first man in 10 years to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals on his tournament debut by beating the 22-time Grand Slam champion.
Kyrgios reflected on beating Nadal in that now-iconic match, but admitted: “It was life-changing, but I wasn’t ready at that age to take on the responsibility.”
It seems Laver was right to issue such a warning, even before that win had materialised.
