Nick Kyrgios has been branded ‘overrated’ and a ‘clown’ ahead of a potential return to action in January’s Australian Open.
The 30-year-old has been embroiled in his fair share of conflict owing to his outlandish personality both on and off the court.
Nick Kyrgios is one of the biggest names in tennis despite never winning a grand slamGetty
A succession of knee and wrist injuries has restricted Kyrgios to broadcasting roles in recent years however the ‘bad boy’ of tennis is set to return in early 2025.
Kyrgios is ready for another shot at a Grand Slam and is eyeing the Melbourne showpiece as the perfect place to reignite his career.
But not everyone is pleased to see him return to the court with former world No 3 Nikolay Davydenko calling on tennis to ‘forget about him’.
“He is generally overrated,” the Russian told BetBoom Tennis. “When it was time to play, he was always injured. In short, let’s forget about him.”
Meanwhile, Elana Vesnina, was also scathing in her assessment of the Australian although she did offer some praise for his game.
“Clown, I agree,” she said. “But he was incredibly talented and gifted. He had a powerful serve and a superb forehand. But when it came to winning a major title, all that went up in smoke.”
But the pair’s comments are only likely to fuel Kyrgios’ desire to return to competitive tennis and prove he still has what it takes to fight to Grand Slams.
His last taste of a Grand Slam action was the Wimbledon final in 2022 when he lost to Novak Djokovic before going on to reach the US Open quarter-finals later that year.
“I am coming back because something is keeping me around the game,” Kyrgios told the Code Sports podcast.
“I have beaten pretty much every person that has been put in front of me, made the final of a Grand Slam, won a doubles title in a Grand Slam, won multiple titles and made money.
Kyrgios finished runner-up to Djokovic at Wimbledon in 2022Getty
“But I think the one thing that is now my target is a Grand Slam. I think that will be the only thing that will shut people up at the end of the day.”
“I just miss being out there playing in front of a home crowd. The [wrist] injury I had was brutal. The surgeon said I probably wouldn’t be able to play again.
“But I said, ‘Whatever, just try and get me another two to three years of my career’. I just want to be out there, lighting up the crowd and playing in front of my own country.”
