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Nick Kyrgios hopes to lean on foe-turned-friend Novak Djokovic for invaluable Australian Open match practice, but on one condition.
Djokovic confirmed on Thursday he’s planning to play the Australian in a practice match in Melbourne, although Kyrgios has requested they play shorter sets.
It would likely be Kyrgios’s only action before the year’s first major, the Australian a controversial late withdrawal from the maiden United Cup with an ankle injury.
“We are talking with the Australian Open about doing something in a week prior to the start of the tournament,” Djokovic confirmed after booking a quarter-final berth at the Adelaide International 1.
“Yes, I chatted with Nick, and I would like to play with him, and he accepted, but he wants shorter sets. Let’s see if that works out.”
Nick Kyrgios congratulates Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon. (Photo by Frey/TPN/Getty Images)
Djokovic, a nine-time winner at Melbourne Park, said the spectacle would be part of the new Tennis Australia initiative that includes ticketed practice matches on Rod Laver Arena before the main event begins on January 16.
“I’m happy if that will be organised; we’re still not having 100 per cent confirmation, but I think most likely will happen with Nick, so I’m looking forward to that,” Djokovic said.
The world No.22 lost to Djokovic in last year’s Wimbledon final, the 21-time major title winner declaring “it’s officially a bromance” after softening the Australian during a pre-final practice session where it was decided the winner would pay for dinner.
Kyrgios, who had previously called Djokovic a “tool” and mocked his post-match celebrations, defended him amid his deportation from Australia before the 2022 tournament over his unvaccinated status.
“I wasn’t his favourite guy, let’s take it that way, for many years,” Djokovic, who could also play doubles with Kyrgios later this year, conceded.
“But he was one of the very few that stood by me last year, and I respect that and appreciate that.
“In those moments you can actually see who truly supports you and who is by your side and who goes with the flow of the society and the pressures that media puts on you.
“He was giving me undivided support in the moments where I was being challenged a lot, and him as an Australian, I respected that a lot. Since then, our relationship has changed for the better.”
Thanasi Kokkinakis has pushed highly-rated Italian Jannik Sinner but missed his moments in a straight sets exit in Adelaide.
The local favourite, a semi-finalist in the corresponding tournament last year, lost 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 to the world No.15 as a quarter-final berth went begging.
But the 21-year-old, coached by Australian Darren Cahill, took his chances to subdue the crowd and set up a final-eight showdown with Sebastian Korda.
Kokkinakis won just one of seven break points against the Italian.
Sinner won two of this three, twice breaking Kokkinakis’s serve when the Australian appeared set to comfortably hold.
The Italian was off his game early thanks to the low afternoon sun that drenched the Memorial Park hard court, seven unforced errors in the first five games creating some momentum for Kokkinakis.
He was unable to convert that though, Sinner enjoying some luck when the ball bounced favourably off the net for a winner on one break point.
Kokkinakis only broke the Italian after he had lost his own serve, then missed two more break points at 5-5 in the first set.
Sinner rescued himself there, then cruised in the tie-break before drilling his powerful forehand to both corners early in the second set to land the decisive break of serve.
“It’s tough to play against him, the last meeting was in Cincinnati and was a thriller (Sinner won in three tight sets),” Sinner said.
“It was a tough match; especially in the beginning with the sun and shadow, there wasn’t a lot of rhythm.
“But after that and especially in the tie-breaker I raised my level.”
Kokkinakis will remain in South Australia to defend his memorable Adelaide International 2 title next week, while he’ll also look to gain valuable ranking points at Melbourne Park after a first-round exit last year.
John Millman will play his ninth Australian Open and the resurgent Jaimee Fourlis her first in five years after the pair were both handed wildcards to the year’s first tennis major.
Former world No.33 Millman, who beat Roger Federer at the 2018 US Open and almost repeated the dose at Melbourne Park 18 months later, drifted out of the world’s top 100 last August and is currently ranked 147.
“I’m extremely grateful to be given the opportunity to play at the Australian Open,” Millman said ahead of this month’s event.
“It’s a special place for me to return to in front of my friends, family and the powerful Aussie crowd. I couldn’t be more excited.”
Fourlis surged back from outside the top 300 last year, winning 50 matches including 12 straight as part of an incredible 24-set streak on her way to three ITF singles titles.
She won on Australian Open main-draw debut as a 17-year-old but then missed 18 months after shoulder surgery in 2020.
“I’m so thankful to Tennis Australia for the opportunity to play in the main draw of my home slam,” the 23-year-old, who made the Australian Open mixed doubles final with Jason Kubler last year, said.
The final wildcards have gone to Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima and Wu Yibing of China, both of whom will make their Australian Open main-draw debuts at Melbourne Park.
AUSTRALIAN OPEN WILDCARDS
Men: John Millman (AUS), Alexei Popyrin (AUS), Jason Kubler (AUS), Rinky Hijikata (AUS), Dominic Thiem (AUT), Christopher Eubanks (USA), Luca Van Assche (FRA), Wu Yibing (CHI).
Women: Jaimee Fourlis (AUS), Storm Hunter (AUS), Talia Gibson (AUS), Olivia Gadecki (AUS), Venus Williams (USA), Taylor Townsend (USA), Diane Parry (FRA), Moyuka Uchijima (JPN).
Emma Raducanu has criticised the indoor courts at the ASB Classic in New Zealand after suffering an ankle injury which has put a question mark over her participation at the Australian Open.
The former US Open champ was left in tears as she was forced to withdraw from Thursday’s second-round match against Viktoria Kuzmova at the start of the third set, having rolled her ankle .
The contest had been moved indoors due to rain in Auckland, but the 20-year-old Raducanu was not happy with the standard of the playing surface.
“It’s difficult to take,” Raducanu said.
“I’ve put a lot of physical work in the last few months and I’ve been feeling good and optimistic.
“So to be stopped by a freak injury, rolling an ankle is pretty disappointing, in the first week as well. I thought I was playing some pretty decent tennis.
“The courts are incredibly slick, like very slippery, so to be honest it’s not a surprise that this happened to someone.
(Photo by Shi Tang/Getty Images)
“It’s out of my control and after a very long day of waiting around. But we’ll assess over the next few days and see what the next steps are.”
Raducanu had breezed through the opening set 6-0, but Kuzmova hit back to take the second 7-5.
Raducanu called for medical treatment before the start of the third set, and it quickly became apparent she could not continue.
Raducanu ended her 2022 season early after suffering a wrist injury in October, but had started 2023 by rallying for a 4-6 6-4 6-2 victory over emerging Czech talent Linda Fruhvirtova, 17, on Tuesday.
Raducanu has been marked as one of the biggest stars in tennis since winning at Flushing Meadows in 2021, but her career since has been dogged by injuries, having retired from matches four times in 2022.
Meanwhile, veteran Venus Williams blew a 5-3 last-set lead in a match that stretched over nearly seven hours because of rain in losing to Zhu Lin of China 3-6 6-2 7-5.
The 42-year-old Williams fought through every moment of the second-round match which began after noon and ended near 7pm, which began outdoors and ended indoors, and which contained 13 service breaks before finally tipping in favour of Zhu in the last few games.
Seven-time grand slam champion Williams, starting her 30th year on the WTA Tour, won her first tour match in nearly two years when she beat Katie Volynets on Monday in the first round of the Auckland tournament.
She played only four matches in 2022 and was hoping to progress to the second round of a tournament for the first time since 2019.
“It was not great,” Williams said. “Definitely tough. I’ve played a lot of matches in my life and I’ve played through some intense delays but it was definitely like two separate matches.”
Top-seeded American Coco Gauff will face Zhu in the quarterfinals after her 6-4 6-4 win over compatriot Sofia Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open champion.
Seventh-ranked Gauff also had to play indoors and beat Kenin in just under 90 minutes, levelling their head-to-head record after Kenin beat Gauff en route to the Australian Open title.
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