Recovering Kyrgios ‘tired’ of playing tennis
Nick Kyrgios said he is “tired” and does not want to play tennis any more as he continues to recover from injury.
The 28-year-old Australian missed all four majors in 2023 because of wrist, knee and foot injuries.
On Saturday, Kyrgios said he will not take part in the Australian Open in January because of injury concerns.
“If it was up to me, I don’t really want to play any more to be honest,” Kyrgios told the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast.
“I have to [keep playing]. I’ve got so much more to give but, for me, I don’t feel like playing any more.”
Kyrgios enjoyed the best year of his career in 2022, reaching his first Grand Slam singles final at Wimbledon and a career-high of 11 in the world rankings.
But, he withdrew from the Australian Open in January with a knee injury before undergoing surgery for the issue.
He then missed the French Open because of a foot injury and Wimbledon with a wrist ligament problem, which also forced him out of the US Open.
The 2021 Australian Open doubles champion has since had surgery on his wrist but, having dropped out of the world rankings, he said he is “exhausted” with his continuing recovery process.
“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,” he said.
Kyrgios has played just one ATP Tour match this year, losing to China’s world number 64 Yibing Wu in Stuttgart in June.
“I only want to play for about another one to two years, be at the top, and go down my own terms,” Kyrgios said.
“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’.”
He has previously opened up about mental health issues that left him contemplating suicide in 2019.
“That period in 2019 accelerated my exhaustion and almost pushed me to the end of my career a bit earlier.
“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,” he said.
“It’s just hard. I am tired. I’m tired of playing tennis.”