BNP PARIBAS OPEN

March 6, 2025

Nick Kyrgios

Press Conference

B. van de ZANDSCHULP/N. Kyrgios

7-6, 3-0 [Ret.]

THE MODERATOR: Tough luck, Nick. What's the update on your wrist? It obviously got worse in your match.

NICK KYRGIOS: Yeah, I wasn't too confident that I was going to be able to play today, to be honest. Two days ago in practice I had to stop my practice because I felt pain in my wrist. I felt like it was okay to take the court. Just, yeah, got progressively worse. But, yeah, started feeling sharp pain in my wrist.

Yeah, I mean, look, I thought the level was good. Played some really good tennis, and it was entertaining first set, could have easily took that first set. Yeah, just think, I don't know whether I could have done something different in my preparation. I don't know.

Yeah, two days ago definitely set me back a bit. Yeah, that's pretty much it.

Q. Sorry to see that. You were really emotional on the court. Sort of curious is what's going through your mind at that point is the pain and the idea that you know you're going to have to leave this match, or something larger that this might be the last time here and you're unclear about how much more you might be able to play?

NICK KYRGIOS: It's just more so I guess the amount of work I've put in to get back, and just to know that it's not -- like, I can play some, there are glimpses of some really good tennis that I can still play.

I guess this process has been probably one of the biggest challenges I've faced in my life. Reality, it's not too bad, but for my tennis career, it's by far the biggest. Yeah, just the amount of work that goes in when I go back home or when I'm not playing, it's not fun. I know that I can't really be doing any more to try and get back and play.

It's just like the process of, even if I lose that match, I don't want to -- like, I don't mind losing if I don't feel, you know -- I know it's going to be uncomfortable but I don't want to feel the pain I was feeling. I'm okay to lose a match. I've lost matches in my career many times.

I guess it's just the amount of work I put in and I'm still having so much discomfort in my wrist. That's I guess why I got a bit emotional towards the end because it's one of my favorite tournaments. You know, even after Australian Open I wasn't sure what I was going to play next, but this was always probably going to be one of the tournaments I'm going to play regardless. I love it here. I've had so many good memories here. It's one of the best tournaments we have.

After Australian Open, all I did was rehab, train, and then try and get ready for this tournament. I was two days out of the tournament here and I was having a great training session, and literally the second-to-last point in my training session I hit a forehand, I felt a sharp pain, and I had to stop playing.

I mean, it's not ideal, but I guess, I don't know, we go back to the drawing board as a team, and we just try and figure out and navigate a way to just get through these matches. Like, I would have loved to be able to finish that match even if I lose just as a building block, to say, okay, I went out there and was competing with a very good player, and I had chances and set points and breakpoints. So it's like these building blocks, but now if I'm not finishing matches that becomes a concern.

Q. From what you've experienced over the last year or whatever with the wrist, et cetera, can you gauge up to now what might happen now as far as recovery is concerned, how long do you think things might take, and would it mean not playing Miami or what?

NICK KYRGIOS: You know, right now, I just went straight to the locker room and iced it. I'll try and do all the right things to settle it down.

But look, like, no one in the sport has had a wrist reconstruction and tried to play after that. There's been players that have had wrist surgeries and nowhere near as bad as what I had.

It would be nice if someone had this injury prior if I could just go there and ask them, okay, these are setbacks you were having. There's really no -- like, it's all an experiment at this point. I was told I was arguably maybe not ever playing tennis again. I feel I'm like right there, I feel like I can compete.

This guy beat Alcaraz at US Open in straight sets, and I've got set points against him in the first set. I'm there, but if I'm not able to finish matches it doesn't really matter at this point. I'm not too sure right now. I don't even... I'm not sure how it's going to pull up tomorrow. It feels relatively pretty sore at the moment. We'll see how it goes.

Q. Sorry.

NICK KYRGIOS: It's okay. You guys don't have to keep saying sorry. It's absolutely fine.

Q. The last few years have been so rough for you. Has it changed the way you feel about tennis and how much you want to play the game?

NICK KYRGIOS: Yeah, I've never been a player to play all year round, but when I do play, it's usually the best tournaments in the world. It's the Grand Slams, it's the Masters events, it's the best 500s. I do enjoy playing.

This is all I've done since I was seven years old is play tennis. Yeah, these are the tournaments I wanted to play growing up. I watched these events.

So yeah, like, I want to go out there and I want to compete. When I had the surgery 18 months ago, if I really didn't want to play, I didn't have to rehab, I didn't have to try and get back on the court.

I want to play. I knew I was going to be in discomfort tonight after two days ago but I took the court. Yeah, it's brutal, especially because I was having such a good year. I think that's what is painful for me. And I think, you know, the coach I'm here with this week, my physio, I keep talking about that year, and it's, like, you can't expect that anymore. That's I think for me what's a bit heartbreaking just because I thought I'd figured it out.

I had an amazing season, literally knocking on the door of a Grand Slam, and then you just get pulled right back, and now you're gonna start from -- I literally don't have a ranking at the moment, was out for one-and-a-half years, and I'm trying to work my way back.

The injury was, you know, not ideal. But I think it's hard for me to kind of, I guess, not think about how good I was playing, like, you know, and then... Yeah, it's brutal.

Q. Does it just baffle you that as soon as things get right, something else goes wrong and then you just get to the stage of enough is enough?

NICK KYRGIOS: I mean, look, a lot of opportunities come since I have been injured. There is a lot of things that have been great in my life and amazing opportunities that have come, me sitting out of the sport, that have opened many doors as well.

I'm extremely grateful for those, but this is where it's all started. None of this would be possible without tennis. None of what I can do for my family, myself, my team, the travel, none of it was possible if I didn't have the results I had in tennis, who I was in tennis.

None of it's possible. It sucks, because I do enjoy, as much as I have had a love/hate relationship with this sport, and it makes me fucking angry -- sorry -- I want to play. I want to play.

I had glimpses of it tonight with the crowd going absolutely ballistic, and I'm playing amazing and I'm enjoying being out there. The pain, it's just, like, yeah, it's not great.

I don't know. I'll just keep looking forward and try and do the right thing. Obviously the time frame of Miami is not ideal, but, you know, I was scheduled to play that, so I will see how my wrist responds. And if not Miami, I will keep looking forward. I can't keep looking back and being disappointed. Otherwise I don't know how much enjoyment I will have in that.