The last two Australian men to win a title of any sort at their home Grand Slam will join forces again for next month’s championships at Melbourne Park.
Thanasi Kokkinakis confirmed on Thursday he will be playing alongside Nick Kyrgios in the men’s Australian Open doubles tournament. It will be the first tournament they have played together as a team since the 2022 ATP Finals. Kyrgios has been sidelined from the Tour for months due to injury issues after undergoing surgeries on his knee and wrist. Since reaching the quarter-finals of the 2022 US Open, he has only been able to play three matches.
Ahead of Kyrgios’ return to the Tour, Kokkinakis confirmed the pairing will reunite on the court. In 2022 they won the Australian Open doubles title as wildcards after beating four seeded pairings to reach the final. Then in the title match, they produced a straight sets win over compatriots Max Purcell and Matthew Ebden. During the same season, they also won the Atlanta Open.
“Everyone loved it last time. We loved it [too] – it was so much fun,” Kokkinakis said.
“It’s definitely not going to be the priority for us [but] we feel like we owe it to people to get back out there and have some fun. It’s not something we’ve practised. I think I’ve played maybe three doubles matches, it feels like, since I played with him …
“It’s going to be great for tennis, great for fans in Australia, and fans all over the world [to have Kyrgios back]. He’s a different cat. Obviously, he has a different sort of energy about him, and he’s a hell of a player.”
Kyrgios will return to competitive tennis during the first week of January at the Brisbane International which is an ATP 250 event. According to the latest entry list, Kokkinakis is not playing there unless he receives a late wild card entry. The 28-year-old is currently ranked 77th in the world which is only 12 places below his career-high. However, he is targeting a new milestone in the new year.
“Top 50 is the next push for me, and I don’t need to stop there. I think I can keep going, but that’s obviously the short-term goal,” Kokkinakis replied when asked about his goals.
Kokkinakis is one of nine Australian men ranked inside the top 100. The Australian Open will start on January 12th.
