Australia’s Nick Kyrgios said he had a ‘shocking’ night of sleep after learning he has made it through to his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon.
The world No.40 is through to the title match after Rafael Nadal was forced to withdraw from the competition on Thursday evening due to a tear in his abdomen. Kyrgios is playing in his 30th major tournament and until now he had never gone beyond the quarter-final stage. He has now become the first male player from his country to reach the final at The All England club since Mark Philippoussis in 2003.
“As a competitor, I really wanted to play that match. It was something that as soon as I beat (Cristian) Garin, Rafa was a high possibility, someone I’ve had so many good battles with before,” Kyrgios said on Friday.
“We’ve both taken a win against each other at this tournament. I did want to see how the third chapter was going to go.’
“Obviously you never want to see someone like that, so important to the sport, go down with an injury like that. “
Kyrgios can be a divisive figure in the sport due to his at times controversial antics such as arguing with match officials or committing code violations. At his lowest, he was issued with a provisional suspension from the Tour. However, few doubted his talents on the Tour. He is a player who has recorded 25 wins over top 10 players in his career, including every member of the Big Three.
Admitting that he never saw himself reaching a Grand Slam final, he is finding it hard to process what has happened this week.
“I had a shocking sleep last night. I probably got an hour’s sleep just with everything, like the excitement. I had so much anxiety, I was already feeling so nervous, and I don’t feel nervous usually.” He revealed.
“I feel like I’m just a reckless ball of energy right now. I just want to go out on the practice court now and hit some tennis balls and just talk. I want the final to come already.”
In total Kyrgios has three days between playing matches heading into the final as a result of his semi-final walkover. Some would argue that this benefits him heading into Sunday as in theory he should be feeling fresher on the court. Although there are also drawbacks to situations such as these.
“Obviously at a Grand Slam, you want to have those matches. I think in a way the competitive juices, you want to have those going, the adrenaline. That’s just something that I’m going to have to go into the final without that semifinal kind of experience.”
The unprecedented journey this week for Kyrgios comes in what is only his eighth tournament of the season. Unlike most players on the Tour, the former top 20 player has openly said he is not prepared to travel for more than four months. Saying he likes to spend time with his family.
As for his route to the final, Kyrgios believed it wouldn’t have been possible without the valuable lessons he learned during this year’s Australian Open doubles tournament where he won the title with Thanasi Kokkinakis.
“I think in Melbourne I realized that. Even at a doubles Grand Slam you do need to just get your stuff done quick and clinical, then just rest.” He explains.
“I felt like earlier in my career, I didn’t realize that these days off and practice are so crucial.”
Now the limelight in Kyrgios’ native Australia will be back on him and for all the right reasons too. Should he win the men’s title, he would become only the third from his country to do so in the Open Era after Rod Laver and John Newcome.
Although being compared to other former greats of the sport is something that leaves him with mixed emotions due to what they have said about him in the past. For example, two-time Wimbledon finalist Pat Cash accused Kyrgios of cheating, abuse and dragging tennis down to new depths following his tense meeting with Stefanos Tsitsipas earlier in the tournament. Cash made his remarks whilst speaking to BBC radio.
The only exception he makes to the critics is his Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt who he says respects him. The two had a hitting session for an hour and a half before Wimbledon started.
“The greats of Australian tennis, they haven’t always been the nicest to me personally. They haven’t always been supportive,” Kyrgios stated. “They haven’t been supportive these two weeks. So it’s hard for me to kind of read things that they say about me.’
“The kind of only great that’s ever been supportive of me the whole time has been Lleyton Hewitt. He kind of knows that I kind of do my own thing. I’m definitely the outcast of the Australian players.”
It isn’t just former Australian players who have criticized Kyrgios. An opinion piece published by The Telegraph said his run to the final was Wimbledon’s ‘worst nightmare.’ A remark made in light of the controversial behavior, as well as the recent revelation that the tennis star will go to court next month on assault charges involving his former girlfriend.
“I just try to enjoy the ride. If that’s what they want to write, I guess that’s what they want to write. I can only control what I do. I’m just going to go out there and enjoy the moment. Since I was born, only eight people have ever won this title. I’m just going to give it my best shot,” he concludes.
Kyrgios will play either Novak Djokovic or Cameron Norrie in the final.
