EXCLUSIVE: Nick Kyrgios Says Tennis Misses ‘Rivalries and Trash Talk’ in His Absence

In the vibrant and pulsating New York City, where the US Open’s energy electrifies the atmosphere, the absence of Nick Kyrgios from the tennis courts this year is a palpable void. The Australian maverick is relegated to the role of spectator; as his body is simply not yet ready for the physical demands of competition, let alone a pickup game at Rucker Park.

“I wish,” Kyrgios lamented in an exclusive interview with EssentiallySports’ Nathan Walroth. “Like, my body at the moment, I wouldn’t be able to take that physicality right now. I used to play all the time when I came to New York. But, look, I’m super bummed that I can’t play.”

His absence, however, provides a unique platform for reflection of what he believes the modern tennis tour is desperately missing: the raw, unapologetic fire of genuine rivalry and the compelling storylines that come from embracing, rather than alienating, strong personalities.

For Kyrgios, the current state of the men’s game, while technically brilliant, lacks that crucial element of drama. He sees the tour as a place where top players are too friendly. “All these top guys like each other, and they’re, like, hugging after games and stuff,” he observed, his tone suggesting a degree of bewilderment.

In stark contrast, Kyrgios proudly admits, “I, to be honest, don’t like many people on the tennis tour.” This inherent friction, he argues, is not a detriment but a necessity for the sport’s mainstream appeal. His solution is simple and direct: “I just think there needs to be more rivalries, more trash talk. And everyone’s playing such great tennis, and no one’s acting up. No one’s, like, getting into trouble, and I don’t really like that.”

In his view, the polished, corporate-friendly atmosphere has sanitized the sport, stripping it of the narratives that drive viewership beyond the die-hard tennis fan. He sees himself as one of the last bastions of that unpredictable, edge-of-your-seat entertainment.

When pressed to identify his own personal rivalries, Kyrgios didn’t hesitate. One of the most prominent was his famously frosty relationship with Rafael Nadal. “Rafa was just… I just didn’t like him, and he didn’t like me,” he stated, not one to mince words. He then pointed to Alexander Zverev as a more traditional rival, noting, “We liked each other, but we had a big rivalry going on.” These admissions underscore his core belief: rivalries can be born from pure dislike or from respectful competition.

This philosophy extends to his involvement with the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), where he advocates for a fundamental shift in how the sport is marketed. Kyrgios believes tennis is sitting on a goldmine of content it fails to utilize.

“I think tennis doesn’t capitalize on the personalities they have,” he said. “There’s a lot of different people out there that are playing at the top of the game, and tennis is just a very… I don’t think they embrace personalities well at all. I think they kind of alienate them a little bit.”

He sees the emergence of young stars like Carlos Alcaraz as a perfect opportunity for the sport to change its approach, to showcase the characters within its ranks rather than forcing them into a sponsor-friendly mold. For the Australian, the path back to the mainstream isn’t through tradition, but through leveraging the unique and often controversial stories of its players. And in classic form, his prediction for the US Open diverged significantly from what fans might have anticipated.

Nick Kyrgios’ surprise US Open take

During the same exclusive interview with EssentiallySports, Nick Kyrgios delivered a prediction for the US Open. In a field dominated by Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, Kyrgios threw his support behind American Jenson Brooksby.

“I hope Jenson Brooksby makes a run. I love Brooksby,” he declared. “I think he’d be nuts if he, in New York, got that crowd going. Like, I think he’s a great kid.” He reiterated his choice with excitement, imagining the chaos that would ensue: “Jenson Brooksby rocking Arthur Ashe would be f***ing nuts.”

This pick is less an analysis of current form—Brooksby has had an uneven season with 15 wins and 11 losses—and more a testament to the kind of player Kyrgios values: a fiery competitor who could harness the New York crowd’s energy to create the very kind of storyline-rich theatre he’s advocating for.

However, in the end, Brooksby was unable to make it past the second round after losing to Italy’s Flavio Cobolli in a four-and-a-half-hour marathon.

Predictions aside, Kyrgios’s time in New York, though spent away from the tennis court, has been a reminder of his role in the tennis ecosystem. His thoughts on rivalry, marketing, and even his off-the-wall prediction for Jenson Brooksby all stem from a single, consistent belief: tennis is at its best when it is unpredictable, when personalities clash, and when the drama unfolds.

As he continues his recovery, the tour awaits the return of not just a formidable player, but a force of nature who understands that sometimes, being liked is far less important than being entertaining.