We won’t get to enjoy Nick Kyrgios’ antics and jaw-dropping tennis moves at the 2023 Australian Open. The Australia native announced on Monday that he is forced to miss the tournament due to a knee injury.
According to Kyrgios, he will be forced to undergo an arthroscopic procedure after a small tear and a cyst in his lateral meniscus was discovered during a routine MRI scan. The news came less than 24 hours before the 27-year-old player was set to take the court against Roman Safiullin in the first round.
“I’m devastated. It’s brutal,” said Kyrgios. “This is my home tournament, and obviously winning the tournament in doubles [last year] and playing the best tennis of my life. All I can do is my best to come back.”
Nick Kyrgios was considered Australia’s best chance to have a home Australian Open winner in a while. The last time an Australian won the tournament was in 1976, when Mark Edmondson did it, while the country’s most recent Grand Slam win came in 2002 when Lleyton Hewitt won Wimbledon.
Kyrgios was coming off a year in which he played some of his best tennis. He made his first Grand Slam finals at Wimbledon in 2022 while also reaching the quarterfinals at US Open for his best result at the tournament. He is currently the No. 21 ranked tennis player in the world.
