THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 3, 2021

Nick Kyrgios

Press Conference

F. AUGER-ALIASSIME/N. Kyrgios

2-6, 6-1 (ret.)

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. How would you describe what happened, how it felt at the time, what your thoughts are about its effect going on from today?

NICK KYRGIOS: I mean, yeah, I felt it specifically 4-1, 15-All. I hit a first serve and I felt a strain towards my left abdominal. I mean, I've had that injury before, you know, playing juniors. When the load spikes up, the body's not used to playing the load, it can cause some issues.

Then at 30-15 I hit a wide serve. I actually was going to hit a big forehand. I can picture it going on. I was going to hit a big forehand and then ended up hitting a dropshot. I missed it. As soon as I served, I felt an acute pain. I knew I was in a bit of trouble.

That's just the way it goes sometimes. Like, it's funny because I woke up today feeling phenomenal. My hips felt good, my body felt good. I was like, Wow, I'm back, I'm feeling good. The luck just didn't go my way.

In a way he was a bit lucky because I felt today I was playing unbelievable. I came out of the blocks, I was returning lights out. I was actually finding my stride. I've never felt more comfortable on the grass honestly. I felt like he was really struggling with the way I was playing, I was making a lot of returns. I was hot. I broke him I think three times in the first set.

But that's part of it. Injury is a part of the game. He's a hell of a player. He's a professional. He's going to do some great things.

Again, I'm not too upset with it.

Q. How disappointed are you? You could see the way you spoke to the crowd afterwards, you were upset that you let them down in a way, to entertain them. That's been a feature across your first two matches. Is that an element of your disappointment today?

NICK KYRGIOS: Yeah, for sure. In a way it's the way I go about my career. Like people say, He's not professional, he could have done more, he could have been more in the gym, done more rehab.

That's what makes me the way I play, my game style. I honestly did all I could to prepare for Wimbledon. I was training a little bit back home. I got here. I could have got here earlier, but I didn't want to. I didn't want to go in the bubble earlier. I didn't want to force that on my girlfriend, on my best friend, my manager, any of that.

I got here, I did what I could. I battled through. My body just wasn't to where it needed to be to continue to play at this level and beat these quality players. My game's there. My game is obviously there. He's 15 in the world. I'm making the guy look pretty average in the first set, and I haven't played a tournament in six months. So my game is there. My confidence is high as ever.

My body, I got to get it right. Whether that takes a week or two weeks, it is what it is. I was devastated, obviously. I'm enjoying myself. Going from the bad boy of tennis, all this stuff, to now one of the crowd favorites. I knew they wanted me to keep playing. I tried to give everything I absolutely could.

I knew the more I served, the worse it was getting. It was heartbreaking for me. I told the crowd it was the end of the road. It was a journey. I honestly thought the way I was playing I could have done some pretty cool things this week. But it is what it is.

It was tough to leave that crowd honestly.

Q. Have the crowds reinvigorated you, made you want to play more tennis going forward this year?

NICK KYRGIOS: Yes. I definitely feel more comfortable getting out there. When they embrace you, they embrace your personality, they embrace the way you go about it. Of course I want to go out there and play.

I think there's something cool in the fact I pick and choose very wisely what I want to play. I don't want to be playing every week. That's not who I am. I don't want to be chasing a tennis ball around the world. That's not me.

I think it's cool that I don't play that often, because when I do play, they definitely tune in. All my matches are packed out. I think that's the cool thing about it. They're like, Kyrgios will be playing, now he's playing, there's full hype around it. It's pretty cool.

We'll see. I really enjoyed the crowd this week. It felt like I was playing back home in Australia. It was even better. So it was cool.

Q. What have you actually done? When did it happen?

NICK KYRGIOS: 4-1, 15-All. Then 4-1, 30-15. On my service game I felt my ab, my lower left abdominal strain. It was just getting worse and worse. You're talking about a guy that serves -- I can confidently say I've got one of the best serves in the world. I serve 210 to 220 consistently. I couldn't serve over 110 kilometers an hour towards the end. I was just rolling it in.

Unfortunately it's not enough against a player like Felix. Yeah, I did an MRI. I've done all the right things. I've iced it. I've got on top of it already. Obviously my plan is to rest it, rehab it, then get back out on the court for the U.S. swing. Just try and play. But I have to look after my body.

As I said in the previous press conference, I need to make sure my body is right to play because if it's not, then I'm not going to play.

Q. You said before the tournament your plan was to go to The Bahamas after this. When will you decide as to what you're going to do as far as Atlanta or Tokyo is concerned?

NICK KYRGIOS: Well, obviously I'll see how I pull up the next couple days. The doctors and the physios told me an injury like this, you know, it's better to do another imaging session two to three days after it because that's when the bleeding will kind of show up more as to what you've kind of done.

It is what it is at the moment. I might have even stay a day or two in London out of the bubble with my girlfriend, see what London's about, then head to The Bahamas, rehab, train.

Look, I don't know about the Olympics or Atlanta just yet. If I'm to play the Olympics, I've said it numerous times, I want to do it the right way. I want to do it with full crowds, with my guests there. I want to do it when I'm able to watch other athletes do their thing.

That's the Olympics for me. The Olympics, the way it's going to go on, is not the Olympics. That's not what it is for me. With these restrictions, that's not how I want to remember the Olympics either if I play it just one time.

We'll see. We'll see what I do.

Q. Just to confirm, you're not going to be able to play mixed with Venus?

NICK KYRGIOS: Look, it's heartbreaking honestly. I haven't had that much fun in a long time. I just got goose bumps thinking the fact I might have to tell Venus Williams I can't play mixed doubles because of injuries. It's brutal for me. I'm respectful in the fact that I've now taken another day of her time. She's been here. She could have been planning other things. It's brutal.

How much improvement am I going to get with something like this that I can't even serve in singles to play mixed doubles? It's brutal. I'm telling you deep down, I'm one of the people that will try and do absolutely everything to play doubles.

Yeah, it's tough. I would have been fine to lose today and not be injured. But it's more heartbreaking like this, you know.

Q. This is the last year there's going to be no play on the middle Sunday. What are your favorite memories if you have any? Do you think that's a good decision?

NICK KYRGIOS: Yeah, it's tradition, isn't it? Wimbledon's is full of those. Kind of like how they don't take any stick from anyone. They don't really care. They do it their own way. That's what makes it special.

I played on the middle Sunday once. I had to finish my match against Lopez. That was awesome. That was actually incredible. That was a very special match for me, one of my best matches I've played here. It was cool.

I mean, look, I'm actually surprised they're going to do that. I kind of like the middle Sunday off. Everyone just kind of has a break, then they're back on again. It's cool. I don't know. Obviously they're doing it because the weather is a bit unpredictable here, right?

Q. Everyone is fascinated by your partnership with Venus. If you are to pull out, which seems to be the case, how will you break the news? Knock on her door in the hotel? Shoot her a text?

NICK KYRGIOS: I mean, I'll contact her, we've been messaging each other on Instagram. It's going to be heartbreaking. Obviously I'll see her around. She obviously won't be too happy about it too. She doesn't know how many Wimbledons maybe she's going to play again. She's not taking any match for granted, whether it's mixed doubles, doubles or singles.

I don't want to think about it at the moment. I'm just still a bit disappointed. Obviously I kind of play it off as if it's not a big deal. It's not a big deal in the scheme of things, but I'm still disappointed.

I sacrificed a lot to be here, to try and play, put myself in a position to do damage. I wouldn't have come here if I didn't think I was going to be able to play a good level. I actually played better than I thought I was going to play.

If I get past Felix today, which I looked like in the first set, I was playing lights out, I'm confident going in against Zverev. Just so many things that needed to fall into place.

I'm just disappointed. I don't want to think about telling Venus just yet.

Q. To clarify, is it definite in your mind that it will be impossible to continue in the mixed?

NICK KYRGIOS: Most likely. As I said, I just pulled out of a match where I was looking like I was dominating, so... Yeah, that would be accurate. I'm not sure how much improvement.

Even if I got the world's strongest man abdominal put here, surgically I think I'd need a couple days. I don't think it's possible.

Q. Are you in constant discomfort with it at the moment? Is it tough to walk, sit? How are you feeling physically? I'm not talking about on the court. Would you maybe try and make amends with Venus and say you'll play mixed doubles with her at the US Open?

NICK KYRGIOS: That's a good idea. You never know. If she wants to play, I'll play. Yeah, I'm uncomfortable. Like today I actually felt fine. Everything felt fine physically going out on the court apart from my mind. I forgot my tennis shoes once again, which is ridiculous.

Yeah, it's uncomfortable. If I breathe deeply, I can feel it. Obviously if I get in some certain stretches, I can feel it. So I'm not happy with my injury at the moment.

I can definitely come back from it. It's something that it could have got a lot worse if I kept playing on it today. It's an acute injury. If I kept playing, I probably could have made the tear worse. I wouldn't have been able to play the U.S. swing. It just would have been stupid.