Kyrgios says he’d like to spend more time back home, claiming ATP season just ‘too long’

NICK Kyrgios says the ATP tennis season is too long and there should be more than three tournaments a year in Australia.

Nick Kyrgios speaks to media at the Brisbane International Tennis Tournament in Brisbane, Monday, January 1, 2018. (AAP Image/Glenn Hunt) NO ARCHIVING, EDITORIAL USE ONLY

NICK Kyrgios says the ATP tennis season is too long and there should be more than three tournaments a year in Australia.

Kyrgios gave a young man’s perspective on the men’s tennis debate about longer-term injuries to many of the top-10 mainstays in the past two years, which led Andy Murray to call on Sunday for a study into which so many leading older players have succumbed.

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The 22-year-old Australian, third seed for the Brisbane International, said he intends to play his schedule in shorter bursts, without the longer series of tournaments which has tended to result in fatigue and outbursts such as those at the past two Shanghai Masters events.

“I think the season is too long, yes — I would love to have more time at home, but that’s just my personality,’’ said Kyrgios, who will play his first match of 2018 against Australian No. 2 Matt Ebden at Pat Rafter Arena.

“But for the guys that love to travel around and play every week, then I’m not too sure.

“I don’t know why we don’t have more tournaments in Australia. I think people would be more than willing to come back here throughout the year.

“For us in Australia, I mean, I was on the road for four months last year and that’s pretty tough. Obviously, I want to spend time with my family, but you can’t. You got to stay on the road.

“You look at guys from America and in Europe, they have so many tournaments.’’

Tennis Australia owns two ATP tournaments, in Brisbane and Sydney, and the first Grand Slam event of the year, but also invests heavily in Challenger and ITF Futures tournaments to give chances for young locals starting out at lower levels of the professional sport.

Australian star Nick Kyrgios wants more tournaments Down Under.

Private promoters funded as many as two ATP indoor tournaments in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne in Octobers in the 1970s and 1980s.

But that month of the annual tennis calendar has for years become the province of Asian tournaments, with the two tours both desperate in more recent years to expand to the emerging and lucrative Chinese market for tennis.

Andy Murray hits a return during training for his first round men's singles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament. Picture: AFP

The 30-year-old Murray, who practised again at the Queensland Tennis Centre today, said he advocates older players, especially, taking longer breaks during the season on a tour which wants them to play all the nine annual ATP-1000 events in the level beneath the four majors in terms of importance and prizemoney.

Asked about his motivation level at the moment, Kyrgios quipped: “I’m feeling good. Obviously a new year, so not too much (time for things) to go wrong just yet.’’

Nick Kyrgios practices at Pat Rafter Arena in Brisbane last week.

Kyrgios, 22, was overtaken in the rankings by a young player, world No. 4 Alex Zverev, 20, in a rare experience in his career and readily admits to having been impressed by Canadian 18-year-old Denis Shapovalov, who upset Rafael Nadal in Toronto last year and reached the US Open fourth round from qualifying.

“I don’t know if I feel old. I mean, I feel like I’m pretty young,’’ he said.

“I think they’ve all got amazing games. Especially, I think, from watching Shapovalov play Laver Cup.’’

Nick Kyrgios: “I don’t know if I feel old. I mean, I feel like I’m pretty young.”