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“My Biggest Influence”: Nick Kyrgios Reveals How He Aims To Bridge the Gap Between Tennis and Basketball

Published 08/11/2021, 9:30 AM EDT

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Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios is one of the most famous players on the Tour. He is one of a kind and certainly knows how to win the crowds and get them on his side. With each passing year, his fan base keeps on increasing. 

Recently, Nick Kyrgios spoke about his love for the game of basketball. Over the years, fans have seen the Australian star walk onto the courts wearing a basketball jersey or a pair of Air Jordan shoes. He considers himself instrumental in building the interest in basketball amongst tennis players. 

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While speaking on this subject, Kyrgios stated, “My biggest influence will probably be the NBA in general. I idolize a lot of players, a lot of basketball players, I’m friends with a lot of basketball players. One of my goals as a tennis player was to bridge the gap between tennis and basketball, which I think I’ve done that successfully. I’ve got a lot of tennis players wearing basketball jerseys, a lot of basketball fans in tennis.”

Nick Kyrgios and his fascination for basketball 

Not long ago, the Australian player got a Kobe Bryant tattoo and also has a portrait of one of the all-time greats, LeBron James. He got the Kobe Bryant tattoo in memory of the legend after his untimely demise. 

USA Today via Reuters

Reflecting on his season, Kyrgios began competing in Australia at the Australian Open. He was making a return after almost a year of being on the sidelines. His journey came to an end in the third round. 

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Next up for the Australian ace were the Wimbledon Championships. After winning his first couple of matches, Nick was forced to withdraw midway through his match as his troubles with the shoulder began affecting his rhythm. 

Now that he is in the North American region, all eyes will be on the Australian player once he steps on the courts at the US Open 2021. 

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Watch this story: How Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, and Others Travel

 

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Written by:

Rohan Kollare

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Rohan Kollare is a tennis author for EssentiallySports. Rohan has a post-graduate diploma in Sports Management and a trophy cabinet adorned with accolades won in district and state-level tennis competitions. He has previously worked in Content Operations for Disney’s Hotstar for over a year, covering tennis and Formula One.
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