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Super talented Nick Kyrgios bombed an ideal chance to redeem himself on the opening day of the Davis Cup quarter final clash with Kazakhstan at Darwin.
After teenager Thanasi Kokkinakis was hammered in straight sets by the Kazhk number one Mikhail Kukushkin, the scene was set for Kyrgios to win back a few fans by evening the score against the 115th-ranked Aleksandr Nedovyesov.
But the 41st-ranked Kyrgios blew the chance big time.
In the first tie-breaker set loss, Kyrgios received a code violation for belting a ball clear out of the stadium.
Kyrgios won the second tie-breaker set, but was not only broken at 5-4 serving for the third set, but lost again in the subsequent tie-breaker.
Down two sets to one, Kyrgios was now fuming, leaving his racquet a crumpled wreck after whacking the net, and in the next game was heard to mutter “I don’t want to be here”.
What gives with this bloke?
He has so much to offer, yet he and close friend Bernard Tomic just don’t know how to behave.
Before the Kyrgios Darwin explosions, Tomic had one of his own, charged with resisting arrest and trespass in Miami.
Are they both trying to outdo each other?
It’s been 15 years since Australia has had two world class men on the tournament circuit in Pat Rafter and Lleyton Hewitt.
Kyrgios and Tomic were heading in that direction until Tomic gave Tennis Australia and Rafter such a massive spray at Wimbedon, he was banned from taking part in this Davis Cup tie.
Originally, Kyrgios said he would support Tomic by making himself unavailable for Darwin. A rare wiser head prevailed.
But Australian Cup captain Wally Masur, a dedicated bloke, didn’t grab the opportunity to cool Kyrgios down. Instead, he said “I won’t do anything to change Nick, he is a different individual”.
That he is, but it’s easy to see how such a volatile talent could so quickly disappear down the toilet.
And what a tragic waste that would be.
The precocious talent problem with both Kyrgios and Tomic is crystal clear – how can their careers be saved first of all, and secondly how can that talent be harnessed?
There are no easy answers, especially if Kyrgios and Tomic prefer to be loose cannons.
But first things first, there’s a Davis Cup tie to be salvaged.
With Kokkinakis beaten 6-4 6-3 6-3 and Kyrgios going down 7-6 6-7 7-6 6-4 on day one, 34-year-old Lleyton Hewitt – with 27-year-old Sam Groth – must win today’s doubles to keep the tie alive.
Kyrgios will play the first of the reverse singles tomorrow, and must win, leaving Kokkinakis to win the final match.
Judging by yesterday, salvaging this tie will be a lost cause.
But it’s another ideal time for Kyrgios to stand up and be counted, this time for his country.
Those chances are not only wearing thin, but running out.