Nick Kyrgios admits he plans to step away from tennis - 'I don’t really want to play any more'
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Published 13/12/2023 at 12:19 GMT
Australia star Nick Kyrgios remains one of the most enigmatic players in men's tennis but the 28-year-old barely featured on the circuit in 2023 due to knee surgery and a couple of other injury problems. He has now admitted that he is planning to step away from the sport in a couple of years, and is now only playing in order to provide for his family.
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Nick Kyrgios has said he does not “really want to play” tennis anymore as he struggles with injury.
However, the Australian said he will continue for the foreseeable future as he wants to provide for his family.
Kyrgios has at times been one of the best players on the circuit, and as recently as 2022 he was in the final of Wimbledon as he played some outstanding tennis.
His unpredictability on the court with unexpected shots and courageous choices have left opponents and spectators dazzled.
However, he has also courted controversy with his occasionally combative attitude, and in recent years he has revealed struggles with his motivation, mental health, and episodes of self-harm.
Ahead of the upcoming Australian Open, he has withdrawn from 2024’s first Grand Slam event as he searches for fitness and suffers from injury.
The 28-year-old played one match in 2023 and he remains “exhausted” from knee surgery, he said, with foot and wrist problems also prohibiting his return.
“If it was up to me, I don’t really want to play any more, to be honest. But I have to, almost. I have so much more to give,” Kyrgios said to the On Purpose podcast with Jay Shetty.
“I was so close [to winning Wimbledon in 2022] and I don’t even really love the sport, I’m only doing this because I love taking care of my family and my people.”
He continued: "I’m tired. I have had three surgeries now. I’m only 28 years old, I always wanted to have a family and not be in pain. When I get up, I can’t walk without pain. It’s a tough gig.
"I only want to play for about another one to two years, be at the top, and go down my own terms.
"I would hate to have another surgery or anything like that. I think I’ve still got the ability to have a good one to two years and then that’s it.
"I think I’ll be at peace with everything I’ve achieved and I’m going to have to just say to everyone out there who wants me to play more, ‘you’re just going to have to be OK with me not playing any more’."
Discussing a spell four years ago when he went into a psychiatric ward after a 2019 Wimbledon defeat to Rafael Nadal, he said that had drained him already.
"That accelerated my exhaustion and almost pushed me to the end of my career a bit earlier,” he said. "If I had a normal career and I flew under the radar, I don’t feel I’d feel this way but those couple years really, I think, put a lot on my age.
"It’s just hard. I am tired. I’m tired of playing tennis."
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