THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 2, 2021

Nick Kyrgios

Press Conference

WILLIAMS-KYRGIOS/Santamaria-Krajicek

6-3, 3-6, 7-5

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Looks like you had a lot of fine with Venus. Tell us about the experience. It was a lot of fun to watch, that's for sure.

NICK KYRGIOS: Yeah, it was amazing. You know, I've played a lot of mixed doubles and a lot of doubles. But there was definitely some added pressure. I usually don't really get affected by -- playing doubles I actually feel like is a bit of fun.

But definitely today I felt a bit of pressure playing with Venus. I just wanted to, not put on a good showing or anything, I really wanted to win. Like, I've never really wanted to win a mixed doubles or a doubles match that much before. I was really trying hard.

It was just a lot of fun. She's iconic to the sport and she's an absolute legend. She'll go down as one of the greatest players ever to pick up a racquet when it's all said and done.

I'm just glad that we got a win today, and she enjoyed herself too. She said she had so much fun. It was a packed crowd out there on Court 3, which is awesome for mixed doubles. It was just honestly a lot of fun. I'm really looking forward to seeing what we can do in the event.

Q. What were you saying to Venus? Because very often it seemed like she was trying to suppress a lot of laughter. What were some of the conversations?

NICK KYRGIOS: I think half the time she was just laughing at my accent, possibly. You know, I think I just talk a lot when I'm out there. Like, you've seen videos of me when I'm playing singles, I'm just trying to talk. It's just a bad habit.

Funny thing is, I was like getting so mad at like past points, things that were a bit unlucky, and she was, like, I don't even remember that. She has such a fast memory. I think that's one thing I actually have to take from her. When a point is done, she completely moves on. She doesn't, you know, dwell on anything that's happened in the past. I guess that's what's helped her have so much success. That's why she's such a great champion.

It was pretty funny, I was, like, talking about things, I can't believe they made it. I was so frustrated. She's like, I don't even remember that happening. We were just laughing. I think we get on pretty well.

We're very different. I think she's quite timid and very quiet. I'm a bit, you know, bashful and loud, and talkative. At least we made it work. We came through, we were down a break, and that's when, you know, the umpire kind of revved me up a little bit. I was very frustrated. I thought we would be hard done by that decision, so that's when I kind of put it into fifth gear and really tried to push us over the line.

Q. You seemed to be enjoying a lot since you arrive to Wimbledon. Would you consider that something changed in your inner life during the last couple of months?

NICK KYRGIOS: I think I just don't take anything for granted. You know, obviously during this COVID time, but the last couple years of my career I've really, you know, put less pressure on the results and just try to get the most out of every day. You know, I don't put too much pressure on winning or losing.

I've still got my girlfriend with me, my best friend with me. Life's good. So I'm still able to play at the highest level, I'm still able to win matches at the highest level, with very little preparation. I'm playing mixed doubles with one of the greatest players ever.

I've got every reason and every right to be happy. I've worked hard the last couple of weeks, and it wasn't easy for me to get back on the court the last couple months. I don't have a coach, I don't really have a trainer. I had to push myself to go out there. I had to find motivation myself.

I'm just enjoying it. I definitely feel like I'm in the later stages of my career. I've been around for a long time. So I feel like I've definitely come, you know, with a lot more maturity towards these events. I'm just enjoying myself. I'm taking every day, I'm just taking it day by day.

Q. How's your body? You have played four different days now. Six months between here and the Australian Open. Are you feeling better even now that you've got some match practice under your belt?

NICK KYRGIOS: I think mentally I definitely feel better. Mentally I feel better knowing that my body can still go the distance, I can still play the level and back up as well. So I mentally feel good.

But, man, I'm hurting. Physically I'm actually getting out of bed, I'm struggling. I just got a full body massage. Obviously this sport demands a high amount of preparation and training.

It's physical. Like, the grass is slow. There's rallies. Like, it's a physical week. I'm doing the best I can. I'm trying to eat well, I'm trying to get some rest, I'm trying to recover as much as I can, and stay hydrated. I'm doing all the right things. My body is holding together now.

But yeah, I'm definitely in pain. I definitely wouldn't be feeling like this the year I made quarters or fourth rounds or anything like that, my body was so used to it. Again, I'm okay with that. I've got enough I think to continue.

Q. Congrats on your win. I have been asking some players about abuse they receive in social media. Last week for some poll Cristian Garin withdrew from the Olympic Games and he received like a lot of abuse and even though he's here and through the second week at Wimbledon, he still is receiving abuse for that reason. I don't know if in Australia those kind of things happen. I know you're very vocal supporting of anti-bullying campaigns and stuff. What's your opinion on that? Have you thought on talking with some other players, making a stance against abuse?

NICK KYRGIOS: I mean, people are just idiots, really, on social media. It just gives everyone -- everyone seems to think they have some sort of voice on social media. It's bad because it can affect people's mental health.

Garin has been doing nothing -- I've been watching his results. They've been nothing but great. He's been doing well I think very, very well. And Chile, as well, hasn't developed that many players lately. To see someone like that doing so well, second week of Wimbledon, as you just said, like, it's ridiculous.

You know, people think it won't affect them but -- I'm a player that deals with it every single day. You know, now that I don't really care about it, I still see it and it's not so easy to block out. Like it's taken me years and years of resilience and maturity to now not really care about it so much.

But it affects people. It got really bad for me to the point that I didn't want to play tournaments. Like, I didn't want to go out there and play because I knew all I was receiving was negative comments that were hurtful. Whether it was racism comments, racial slurs, just like little things, or just anything that would destroy my confidence.

My message to players would just be just go out there. Like Cristian Garin, I think he's like 23 years old, he's going to have an amazing career. Just try and block that out.

As players, we can't really make a stand, because it's never gonna stop. With the way social media is going, it's always going to be there. Some parts of social media are amazing. You get to see some of your favorite athletes. But then you have people that have nothing going on in their life that are so hateful and they have such a shit life that they just have to find things to just beat down other people. It's awful. It's really tough.

I don't know what the answer is, but I hope that he doesn't get too affected by it. Obviously if he's not playing the Olympics, he's got a very good reason for it. He probably wants to play another tournament or rest his body. Like, he's made a smart decision. So I don't know. It's terrible to hear that he's receiving comments like that.

Q. If I heard you correctly earlier, you said that you consider yourself in the latter stages of your career, that you have been playing a long time? I was wondering what goes through your mind when you think about Roger Federer at age 39 and Nadal and Djokovic in their mid 30s, and how you have come to think about yourself at a much younger age being in the latter stages of your career.

NICK KYRGIOS: Well, yeah, I just feel as if -- I don't know. I definitely don't love this sport as those legends do. Like, I feel like Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic, they wouldn't be able to live without tennis. I feel like that's their first love. For me my first love was basketball and I wasn't able to chase that dream.

So I definitely don't have the waking up every day having that, coming so easily, like, wanting to get better, what do I need to do today, every time I step on court, like, looking to improve. I don't have that. It doesn't come as easily to me.

I definitely don't think they dealt with such, especially earlier on, such hate in their career. Which for me, I wouldn't say has driven me out of the game, but it's just, like, definitely put a massive chip on my shoulder from an early stage in my career.

But I'm not saying I'm going to retire any time soon. I'm just saying, like, I feel as if I've been on tour for a long time. I've experienced a lot of things. There's a lot of things I want to do outside of tennis. And I'm not saying Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer are wrong for putting so much into it. Like, they're -- as I said, I've praised them enough.

For me, I feel like I set a goal when I was younger, I didn't want to play past 28, 29. Like, these are the best parts, these are the best years of my life. I want to spend it with my family, my partner, my friends. I feel like I have earned the right, and I've worked hard to have this freedom to do whatever I want after. Do you know what I mean? I've worked hard.

So whether or not that's -- you never know, I might come back at 33, get a wild card, who knows. But I'm just saying, I can't see myself playing as long as those guys.

Q. Just want to ask you about Felix. How excited are you about that matchup? Are the spectators going to be entertained?

NICK KYRGIOS: Well, I think it's a very intriguing matchup. I always have been a massive fan of FAA. I think he's got the platform and the game to really push this sport into, you know, something really exciting again.

I love watching him play. He beat Roger a couple weeks ago. So I think his game is awesome. He plays big. He backs himself.

I'm not even thinking about that. I'm just so hungry right now and I've just got another -- I've got half a day to prepare, recover. And, you know, tactically I'm going to do the same things: I'm going to serve big and play big. If it's enough, it's enough. If not, too good.

It's going to be a good match. I've got nothing but respect for him. He's a hell of a player. He'll be a Grand Slam champion one day I'm sure and he's going to do some special things.

As I said, I'm unseeded. I go into that match as an underdog. But there are people that are going to be expecting me to win that match. That's just the weight I carry, and that's just what it is.

Yeah, I'm looking forward it. It's going to be a nice challenge.

Q. Considering what you just said about the pressures you've been under or you have been under in the early part of your career, et cetera, and now compared to then, now you're feeling quite relaxed and really seem to be enjoying the time on court, how much would you have liked this time now to have been at the start on the earlier stages of your career?

NICK KYRGIOS: I wouldn't say I would want it to be like that, because I feel like it's just been a journey for me. Definitely feel like I wouldn't have been at this mature state of mind if I didn't go through all those things early on in my career and dealt with such hate and such, like, disgusting, you know, behavior from other people towards me.

I feel like if you take any block out in the previous years, it all kind of falls down. So I wouldn't want to -- I wouldn't want to go back in time or anything like that. I'm proud to see how far I have come, what I have achieved in this sport.

At one stage I was an overweight kid from Canberra who was told numerous times from every single coach, You may as well retire, all this bullshit. I'm proud of who I am and who I have become and what I have achieved in this sport. Everything else is a bonus for me.

So, yeah, I mean, I wouldn't want to have that time again. I think I have overcome a lot, and I'm just proud at the end of the day.

Q. You have played Felix once before, that match at Queen's. It was a tight three-setter. Will that have any bearing on the match tomorrow?

NICK KYRGIOS: I mean, I guess we always know what to expect from each other. I know that he loves playing in the strike zone, big serve, and he's very to the point.

He counts on routines. He's a very, you know, I'm not going to say robotic player but loves the same routine, loves the same sort of point over and over again. That's what makes him great. He's got such consistency and discipline.

I need to go out there and try and disrupt as much as I can. I need to serve big, try and give him no rhythm.

I guess that match gives us kind of an insight into what we are like. As I said, I was in a very strange head space that day in Queen's but, yeah, it was a good match. It was very, very close. Tomorrow hopefully is another good battle.