“Just the amount of people that were there supporting me, it was hard to throw the towel in,” said Kyrgios after his plans for a successful Australian Open campaign came crashing. The Aussie star made a high-profile return to the ATP Tour in January this year, but his agenda was seriously hampered by an ongoing injury issue. Though it is yet to be seen whether the controversial personality will make a comeback on the circuit again, he is on the charts to perform at a charity event ahead of the Indian Wells. Subsequently, the Aussie’s latest practice session elicited his influencer girlfriend to drop a cheesy reaction.

Kyrgios commenced the season in high spirits. He joined forces with his ‘bromance’ partner Novak Djokovic for a doubles blockbuster in Brisbane, but it was clear that his body struggled to respond against the tightening competition, as the duo lost the second round clash against the top-seeded pairing of Nikola Mektic and Michael Venus. The Aussie then suffered an opening-round loss in the Australian Open singles against Britain’s Jacob Fearnley. And, upon exiting, Kyrgios suggested that he might not be able to play as much as he hoped for this season.

“I knew tonight was going to be tough. With my physical state going into the match, I knew that I was going to be really hindered with my serve. I tried to do the best I could with the state I was in physically. Obviously heartbreaking because I wanted to play well,” the 29-year-old said, addressing his minor abdominal strain.

Kyrgios and his partner Thanasi Kokkinakis suffered a similar fate in the doubles as well, as the duo pulled out mid-way through their first-round match against James Duckworth and Aleksander Vukic when they were trailing 5-7, 2-3. While his plans to register a similar outing as his impressive 2022 run in Melbourne might’ve hit a speed bump, the former World No. 13 is now gearing up for another return, however, not on the tour.

The Aussie will participate in a charity event on March 3-4, which comes against the backdrop of the ATP 1000 Masters event in California. “The 2025 lineup features top tennis stars like Aryna Sabalenka, Nick Kyrgios, Naomi Osaka, Ons Jabeur, Barbora Krejcíkova, Alexander Zverev, and Holger Rune, with more names to be announced,” read the event’s organisers’ statement. Taking to Instagram, Kyrgios uploaded a photo of him sunbathing in the LA heat as he sat on the court’s benches after a session. Captioning the post, he wrote: “The VILLAIN is usually the character they remember anyway.” This, in turn, sparked a reaction from his girlfriend, Costeen Hatzi, who was in awe of the Australian star. “Slay,” she commented on the post. 

For those unaware, the couple has been romantically involved since December 2021. They first linked up when Kyrgios was hunting for a mirror and Hatzi was selling one on Instagram. The couple regularly posts adorable snaps for fans, but Kyrgios also makes headlines for his regular controversial opinions.

A staunch critic for many who don’t follow the rules – ironically so – Kyrgios recently issued a blunt response to Italian trailblazer Jannik Sinner. Again.

Nick Kyrgios takes a cheeky swipe at Jannik Sinner for losing Laureus World Sportsman of the Year nomination

Nick Kyrgios has been one of the loudest voices condemning Jannik Sinner’s doping controversy. The Italian sensation recently came to a case resolution agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) after accepting a three-month suspension. Sinner twice tested positive for the banned anabolic clostebol in March last year and was due for a final decision in April after WADA appealed to the Court of Arbitration (CAS) for a decision reversal to an independent tribunal’s ‘no guilt or negligence’ verdict, seeking a 1-2 year ban on Sinner.

However, the World No. 1 came to an out-of-court settlement with WADA, which infuriated Kyrgios. He took to X to voice his dissatisfaction with the alleged lack of transparency surrounding his case. “So wada come out and say it would be a 1-2 year ban. Obviously, Sinner’s team has done everything in their power to just go ahead and take a 3-month ban, no titles lost, no prize money lost. Guilty or not? Sad day for tennis. Fairness in tennis does not exist,” he wrote.

Fast-forward to February 28, Sinner was delisted from the Laureus Sportsman of the Year nomination. For the unversed, the Laureus World Sports Awards is an annual award ceremony that honors the most consistent athletes. In an official statement, the chairman of the Laureus Sports World Academy, Sean Fitzpatrick, stated, “Following discussions by the Laureus Academy, it has been decided that Jannik Sinner’s Nomination for this year’s Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award is to be withdrawn.” Moments later, Kyrgios responded to the update on X. “Well, I mean, sportsmanship does mean playing by the rules.”

Controversies apart, Kyrgios will want to recover fast and resume his plans for the 2025 season. When do you think the Aussie will be back on the tour?