Australian No.1 Alex de Minaur has hailed fellow Davis Cup team mate Nick Kyrgios as ‘one of the nicest guys’ in the world of tennis as they prepare for the Australian Open.
The world No.23 says he believes Kyrgios is often misunderstood by others and says he has always received support from the two-time Grand Slam quarter-finalist. Despite his talent on the court and a series of high-profile wins, Kyrgios’ career has been marred by a series of controversies concerning his behaviour. At one stage he was even hit with a suspended ban by the ATP for unsportsmanlike conduct. During the 2019 Italian Open he was defaulted from his match after throwing a chair onto the court in anger.
On the other hand, Kyrgios has also been instrumental in a series of charitable initiatives. During the 2020 Australian Open he was one of the leading figures in the bushfire fundraising appeal. He also has his own foundation which has been set up ‘to increase access to, and provide sport facilities to underprivileged & disadvantaged youths.’
Speaking about the divisive tennis figure on the TODAY show, de Minaur describes the two as ‘almost like brothers’ as he praised Kyrgios for the continuous support he has received.
“Nick’s one of the nicest guys out there,” de Minaur said.
“He’s that person that’s always going to have your back, no matter what.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to be in Davis Cup ties with him and get to know him better and play side by side with him and he’s one of those guys that has always had a lot of confidence in me and has always, from basically a junior, telling me to believe in myself and to go out there and take it.
“He’s very misunderstood but he’s one of the nicest guys out there and he’ll always have your back.
“We’re almost brothers – pretty close.”
Due to a combination of the COVID-19 pandemic and injury, Kyrgios hasn’t played a full competitive match on the ATP Tour since his fourth round loss to Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open almost a year ago. The world No.47 opted not to travel during the pandemic and has publicly criticised some of his peers for their behaviour.
Amid the ongoing COVID-19 crises, Tennis Australia has managed to stage the first Grand Slam of 2021 with the use of strict quarantine measures which players must abide by for 14 days. At present 72 players are in a strict quarantine where they can’t leave their rooms after being deemed a close contact of somebody who has tested positive for the virus. Leading to an adjustment being made to the scheduling of tournaments in the coming weeks.
“We’ve been dealt a very tough hand with everything that’s been happening,” de Minaur commented on the situation.
“It’s going to be tough, a lot of these players haven’t hit for 14 days so it’s going to take a couple of days to get used to it, maybe a week.
“It’s all about adapting.
“You don’t know what’s going to come your way.”
De Minaur started his season by winning the Antalya Open in Turkey earlier this month in what was his first Tour title since 2019. He is set to return to action at the ATP Cup which will start on February 2nd.
