While the rest of the ATP tour set sail, Thanasi Kokkinakis has not played a match since January. His only 2025 appearance came at the Australian Open, where he lost to Jack Draper before withdrawing from doubles the next day. The 29-year-old Aussie revealed he’d been battling a persistent pectoral injury for years, calling the experience “mental and physical torture.” Despite the struggle, he was initially reluctant to undergo surgery — but now, nine months later, there’s an update.

After a season sidelined by persistent muscle issues, Kokkinakis is set to return to the court and play pain-free. The 29-year-old made history with a groundbreaking surgery. the procedure included a dead person’s tendon grafted into his shoulder to repair a torn pec. “It’s a risk I took knowing that that might not be a chance,” he told AAP, shared via Express. “No tennis player’s had the surgery that I’ve had before, so it’s a risky one and the tough part is it’s hard to bounce ideas off anyone.”

He opened up about his long struggle, “I’ve been playing with a bad pec rupture for the best part of four or five years. If I tried to play long matches or back-to-backs, my arm would swell and I’d either have to retire or play through the pain.” That’s why he finally took the plunge. “But I didn’t want to keep doing what I was doing and playing through the pain that I was the last few years, so I wanted to take a risk and see how I go.”

Thanasi Kokkinakis trusted the same doctor who helped Pat Rafter and Shane Warne save their careers. After a couple of weeks back on court, his groundstrokes are “pretty close to 100 per cent,” but serving remains a challenge. His plan now? Return next season during the Australian summer swing starting at the end of December.

On the other hand, Thanasi Kokkinakis wasn’t about to sit on the sidelines after the Australian Open, he showed up for his country at the Davis Cup too. Even though injuries were dogging the whole squad, Thanasi made the trip to Sweden with the team. After that tough AO loss, the 29-year-old didn’t hold back about the pain he was feeling: “My shoulder was gone before the match. I just tried to tough it out. I was touch-and-go again to play this week. Took a million painkillers to try and get through.” 

Showing real support for Aussie tennis, Thanasi helped out as a hitting partner for the Australian Davis Cup team during their qualifier in Sydney. Now, with this risky surgery behind him and pain finally gone, he’s got his sights set on a comeback. However, his time off the court has been spent sharing his story and working on a few exciting projects!

Thanasi Kokkinakis opens up about returning post-surgery

On May 28, 2025, still healing from his February shoulder surgery, Thanasi Kokkinakis popped up on The Sit-Down podcast, honest and upbeat. He was not sure when he’d return to tennis but was cool with chilling at home in Melbourne.

“I’ve thought about that [life after tennis] earlier in my career when I thought that it was the end for me. But now I’m kind of exploring some different avenues – I’m doing a little bit more of this sort of stuff, some podcasts, I’m doing some TV stuff,” he shared. “I’m trying to do some commentary coming up for the French Open, so that’ll be fun. And who knows? Some TV shows, some media stuff in the future. I think I’ve always enjoyed that; I feel pretty comfortable in front of a camera and microphone.”

By then, Thanasi Kokkinakis had already teamed up with Channel Nine for their Roland Garros coverage alongside Todd Woodbridge and Jelena Dokic. He brought a fresh perspective, especially when talking about fellow Aussies like Alex de Minaur, who he stays close with, and Alexei Popyrin, his long battle rival in Paris last year. He reflected on the future, saying, “I try not to look too far ahead, but kind of have one foot through that door to just think about it, because a lot of people… play tennis and then they’re like, what’s now? Or what’s next?”

The start of the 2025 season wasn’t kind. The Aussie showed up in Melbourne following a quarterfinal walkover to Sebastian Korda in Adelaide due to shoulder and thigh injuries, which plagued him at the Australian Open too. Despite the pain, he battled Jack Draper fiercely, taking the first set in a tense tiebreak. But a medical timeout rattled his rhythm, and Draper leveled the match, forcing a tough 4-set finish (7-6(3), 3-6, 6-3, 5-7).

Kokkinakis stayed grounded, admitting, “For me, I kind of wanted to have a little bit of an idea, but yeah, tennis is first and foremost, and I’ll ride that out as long as I can.” Now, fully recovered and buzzing again, the 29-year-old is itching to hit the tour hard. Only time will tell how his comeback plays out—but fans are ready and waiting. What’s your take? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!