'He lives in the chaos' - Thanasi Kokkinakis on facing and partnering with fellow 'Special K' Nick Kyrgios at US Open

When Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios squared off in the Australian Open junior final back in 2013, and won the Wimbledon boys’ doubles title together a few months later, no one would have expected they would have to wait another nine years before they played each other in a tour-level match.

The Aussie duo are good friends and have formed a formidable doubles partnership this season, which saw them clinch the Australian Open crown in January, along with the title in Atlanta last month.

They haven’t been on opposite sides of the net on a match court since a Challenger meeting Kyrgios won in 2014, but that will change on Monday night in New York when they face off on Arthur Ashe stadium in a highly-anticipated US Open first round.

Kokkinakis and Kyrgios were both practicing when they found out they were drawn to play each other and were understandably disappointed to learn only one of them will be advancing to the second round in the closing Grand Slam of the season.

“I was definitely surprised and then a little disappointed for sure. We wanted each other to do well and go on a run,” Kokkinakis told Eurosport in New York on Friday.

“We were talking to each other and Nick was saying like, it's annoying that this is a first round because we could have played hopefully later if we had the right draw and could have made a good run, but it is what it is.

“It's going to be fun. It'll be interesting out there; he just said, let's have some fun and play some good tennis, and yeah, it'll be interesting. I think the atmosphere will be good. It's a weird dynamic. We haven't played each other since the juniors and that was weird as well. So now it's going to be probably a packed house, I don’t know, it's going to be strange.”

Both players are enjoying their best campaigns of their careers.

Kyrgios is coming off a Wimbledon final appearance, while Kokkinakis looks to have put his long streak of bad luck with injuries behind him and has capitalised on being healthy by winning his home title in Adelaide at the start of the year and is one spot off his career-high ranking at the moment.

“It’s nice not to worry about the past anymore,” he says with a grin.

In 2019, Kokkinakis battled hard to win his opening round in New York – his first victory at a Slam in over four years – and set up a clash with Rafael Nadal, only to find out he had torn a pectoral muscle and had to pull out.

“That was a pretty crazy memory,” recalled the 26-year-old.

“I worked so hard. I had six or seven months off after Australia, because I tore my pec coming back and played such a good match in my first round in New York to play Rafa and to get a scan after the first round and realise I already tore it. I was in tears after that, and I couldn’t play.

“I heard there was a chance Kobe Bryant was coming to that match as well, which is all the more crazy now right? But I'm happy with how I fought and my resilience.”

The ‘Special K’s’, as they’re referred to by Australian media, are set to play doubles together at this US Open, which will make their singles first round “even weirder” according to Kokkinakis.

“We haven't been avoiding each other that's for sure. We’re talking all the time. Nothing's changed,” Kokkinakis assured.

“We're still talking s*** to each other in the locker room, and sending each other random stuff on Instagram, so nothing's changed. I'm sure when we get out on court... I don't actually know.

“I don't actually know what it's going to be like when we get out there. But around the locker room and that... I think it's one of those things where two mates play, give it what they have on court and at the end, barring anything crazy on court, I think we'll grab a drink after and we’ll be fine.”

When it comes to Kyrgios, crazy things can happen on the court at any given moment; Kokkinakis is well aware of that and has witnessed many wild incidents involving his partner on the doubles court.

Staying focused while facing Kyrgios in a match can be challenging for many opponents and Kokkinakis is hoping he can weather the storm if and when it occurs.

“My focus is s*** at the best of times. So at least I know with Nick what's coming,” he confessed.

“He brings a circus with him wherever he plays and he lives in the chaos a little bit with how he plays his matches. He plays really well when he does that because he’s just more comfortable in that environment and that's how he's always been.

“I’ll just try and find what's going to work best for me. I think he's used to joking around and playing like that, but I don't know. I don't know how he’s going to come out in the match honestly.”

Kokkinakis believes Kyrgios has found stability around him which has helped him “lock in a lot more” in matches and produce his best tennis.

They’re hoping to qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin in doubles, which Kokkinakis says would be a “a nice little cherry on top”. Doubles has helped Kokkinakis get some much-needed match play and build his body in order to keep up with the grind of the ATP tour.

He’s had the best seat in the house, watching Kyrgios’ lethal serve up close all season on the doubles court. Has that given Kokkinakis any special insight into how he can return the Canberran’s serve on Monday?

“I hope so but I don't want to talk too soon, I've been on the other end of it,” he chuckled.

“It's definitely not easy to return. If he can serve however many aces he served against Djokovic at Wimbledon (in the final), and he couldn't really find a read on it, then I don't know. I do give the edge to Djokovic over me in the returning front.

“That's definitely going to be the biggest hurdle.”

Kokkinakis describes Kyrgios as “the most competitive person I've ever seen on the court”. They know each extremely well, which means their US Open clash could end up becoming a chess match. What stands out to Kokkinakis is the unique atmosphere that follows Kyrgios everywhere on tour.

“It's different. There's a lot of things surrounding him with atmosphere and he gets a lot of attraction and a lot of people go to watch him where they want to see him win and do well or want to see him fail and lose. So there's definitely a lot of noise surrounding him wherever he goes,” he explained.

For Kokkinakis, just being on tour without the countless injury interruptions he experienced in the past has been a real blessing.

Up to 70 in the world, he is on the cusp of surpassing his previous career-high mark which he set seven years ago. He has managed to compete in 16 events this season – including Davis Cup – and is 16-13 at tour-level in 2022.

He has pocketed nearly $900,000 in prize money across singles and doubles, and has managed to attract some sponsors after most of his previous ones dropped him while he was injured.

“Winning cures everything,” he says.

But being healthy and finding his game doesn’t mean Kokkinakis has not been questioning his life on tour.

“I haven't played for this long in a long time, maybe ever. So that's the thing I'm struggling with. I honestly do struggle with the day-to-day, staying motivated and trying to find the balance of going home and refreshing a little bit,” he revealed.

“I've had some good weeks and then some weeks where I’m like, ‘S***, I should have won that match’ or ‘I’ve got to be more motivated and fired up a bit more’.

“To be honest, and I don't know if I've really said this in an interview before, but there's parts of it I love and then parts of it I hate. I love the competitive aspect and playing and then there's times where I'm like, I don't really enjoy this that much; I'd rather just have a stable job at home and just stay home for a long time and just relax. But I know my body, I can't do it forever. So while my body is giving me a chance, I try and get what I can out of me.”

Kokkinakis does not work with a sports psychologist, saying he tried one session ones and hated it, and instead relies on conversations his family and coaches.

“There's definitely an appealing thing that just says to myself, not travelling every two minutes, being home, having a nice house, car, whatever and just being comfortable at home with my family and enjoying life that way a little bit. Because it's just you're always worried about consequences if you go out and drink, or you go out and don’t eat the right foods and don't get enough sleep and you're worried about how that's going to affect the next tournament. So it's a lot of stress and some people love it, others don't, and I'm somewhere in the middle,” is how he puts it.

Is that fine line he is walking between pushing himself to compete and wanting to drop it all and stay home sustainable?

“It’s not very, no,” he responds.

“I don't know. There's times where I kind of go back and forth about what I actually want from the sport. Do I want to go as high as I can or do I want to just kind of enjoy my life and play and everything is a bonus? So that's honestly a balancing act for me.”

It’s a question that won’t be answered quickly, or easily. For now, Kokkinakis is focused on his Monday night showdown with his mate. The rest will have to wait!