Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis pulls off epic four-hour Australian Open comeback
Thanasi Kokkinakis thrilled fans in an epic five-setter before giving them even more in a brutally honest post-match interview.
Aus Open
Don't miss out on the headlines from Aus Open. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis had fans packed into John Cain Arena on the edge of their seats as he won an epic five-setter at the Australian Open on Tuesday.
While it wasn’t quite the almost six-hour marathon match Kokkinakis lost against Brit Andy Murray in the second round last year, it was a tough four hours and 18 minutes for Aussie fans.
The 27-year-old battled back from two sets to one down to seal an intense five-set victory over Austrian Sebastian Ofner. It was a 7-6 (7-1) 2-6 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 7-6 (10-8) triumph.
In an on-court interview immediately after the win, Kokkinakis confessed: “I wish I could do it easier but I can’t. I’ve got the mental focus of a three-year-old.”
When asked what was going on in his head throughout the match, he gave a brutally honest answer.
“You don’t want to know, battling some serious demons that’s for sure,” he said.
“It’s an incredible court. Sometimes I struggle for motivation during the year but January at the Aussie Open definitely isn’t one of those times.
“I had a tough end to last year, tough start to this year. I know it’s the first round but this one meant a lot.”
The shattering loss to Murray still plays on his mind.
“Obviously last year, that one hurt. I had a couple of junkies come up to me at Crown Casino ripping me for that loss against Murray. Didn’t enjoy that too much,” he said.
“But glad I could make amends and win a five-setter here, I can’t thank you guys enough. It’s ridiculous in here, so thank you.”
With Nick Kyrgios absent for a second straight year, fans are once again turning to Kokkinakis to put on a show.
Kokkinakis said he couldn’t have secured the win without the fans’ support on Tuesday.
But when news.com.au asked him whether he plans to use the crowd and hype them up as he and Kyrgios strategically did during their doubles success in 2022, he said it was different without his mate.
“In a way it’s a little easier in doubles because you don’t really have to worry about saving your energy. I can’t hype my crowd up for five sets. It’s very tough. You have to pick and choose your moments,” he explained.
However, he said, fortunately that wasn’t the case on Tuesday.
“They were up the whole time, which was incredible for me. The support here is always nuts,” he said.
“It’s a balance. You want to hype the crowd, but you also want to remember kind of you’re playing an opponent and the crowd is not going to beat them for you.
“So you have to stay locked in and kind of use them when need be.”
Kokkinakis and Kyrgios, dubbed the Special Ks, were the talk of the town during the 2022 Australian Open with both strong criticism and high praise for creating such a rowdy atmosphere.
Kyrgios said his mission was to “give the people of Australia and the Australian Open a show”, “grow the sport of tennis” and psych out his opponents at the same time.
Many said they had never seen anything like it at a tennis match.
Kokkinakis will face 13th-seed Grigor Dimitrov in the second round on Thursday.
Originally published as Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis pulls off epic four-hour Australian Open comeback
‘Growing suspicions’ about Djokovic called out
Extraordinary claims have been made against Novak Djokovic with petrol being poured on a burning conspiracy theory.
Djokovic statue drama turns serious
Novak Djokovic arguably deserves a statue at Melbourne Park more than anyone, but calls to give him one have divided the tennis world.