Nick Kyrgios makes startling Australian Open admission after Brisbane International defeat

Playing his first competitive singles outing in 18 months, Nick Kyrgios’ comeback has started in defeat and with a startling admission about his Australian Open fears.

Nick Kyrgios concedes he would “almost need a miracle” to survive the rigors of a grand slam tournament hinting he may not be fit to play the Australian Open after his surgically repaired wrist bore the brunt of an epic three-setter at the Brisbane International on Tuesday night.

Kyrgios, 29, went blow for blow with the best server on the planet in world No.31 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and very nearly prevailed in a 7-6 (7-2) 6-7 (7-4) 7-6 (7-3) thriller on Pat Rafter Arena.

In his long-awaited competitive tennis comeback the Aussie opened his familiar bag of tricks, combining tweeners and underarm serves with pinpoint groundstrokes and a world-class serve.

To the Brisbane crowd, Australian tennis’ great entertainer looked to be back to something resembling his best.

Nick Kyrgios’ injury woes reappeared during his first-round defeat at the Brisbane International. Picture: Getty

But with the tennis world ready to revel in what appeared to be a promising comeback, Kyrgios poured cold water on the celebrations with a frank assessment of his tennis future.

“I think I was, like, really excited for the Aus Open but after today … the reality kind of set in on me,” he said.

“That’s a best-of-three match with my wrist.

“I think I almost need a miracle and I need the stars to align for my wrist to hold up in a grand slam, for sure.

“Today, if this was a grand slam, we may still be out on court, and I don’t know how I’d pull up the next day or the day after. Yeah, that’s kind of the reality setting in.”

After a pulsating first set tiebreaker Kyrgios sought treatment from his physiotherapist on the surgically repaired wrist which kept him out of the game for the better part of two years.

Awesome to see you back, @NickKyrgios#BrisbaneTennispic.twitter.com/10lIlY93pA

— Brisbane International (@BrisbaneTennis) December 31, 2024

The wrist appeared not to significantly impact him on the court after that, but once the adrenaline had worn off the reality began to set in.

“If I had to win that match, I’m honestly not sure if I’d be able to play my second round,” Kyrgios conceded.

“How it (the wrist) pulls up tomorrow, I have no idea. It’s throbbing like shit right now.

“There are a lot of positives. But again, it’s how much do I want to take of the trauma on my body, the pain.

“When I played the majority of my career, I was playing pretty much pain-free. You go out there for two, three hours, you would enjoy the battle and just focus. Now, there’s just constant pain in that wrist.

“Look, I’ll definitely keep battling for a little bit but yeah, it was definitely cool to be back out there.”

Kyrgios revealed he now does “three to four hours of physiotherapy a day” to get his body in a position to play tennis.

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard hits a return against Nick Kyrgios. Picture: AFP

Less than 24 hours before his match with Mpetshi Perricard, he took the court with Novak Djokovic for an entertaining doubles encounter.

He and Djokovic are due to play in the second round of doubles on Wednesday.

“I felt like I had been hit by a bus yesterday after doubles, to be honest. I was on the treatment table for an hour and a half before bed,” Kyrgios said.

“But we know that’s how it’s going to be.

“For my wrist it’s all new ground now. Today is another building block on I think in the journey. I went from literally practicing with people unranked in Canberra to facing the biggest server in the world – in a week.

“I think tomorrow is going to be a bit of a rough day for my wrist, to be honest. It’s very sore at the moment. We were expecting that.”

Kyrgios said he hoped to play doubles in Brisbane with Djokovic for as long as the draw – and his partner – would allow, before returning to Canberra to begin his Australian Open preparations.

“I’m just so happy to be part of the Australian summer again and hopefully my partner (Djokovic) continues to play doubles here, it would be fun,” he said.

“I completely understand if he wants to prioritise singles.

“Then I’ll just see how my wrist pulls up from the load of this week - that’s the priority.

“I don’t have any plan after the Australian Open tennis-wise, to be honest. I’m really confident I could play the Australian Open, it’s just depending on how my body is, how much tennis I can play.”