When Nick Kyrgios steps onto the court, it’s hard not to sit back and take notice. Possessing a great game and an even bigger personality, the 27-year-old Australian is one of the most natural characters on the ATP Tour. A seven-time ATP Tour champion who reached the Wimbledon final in 2022, Kyrgios is now one of the stars of Netflix’s new behind-the-scenes tennis series Break Point.
ATPTour.com looks at five things to know about the Australian crowd favourite. Kyrgios doesn’t try to hide his love for basketball. The Australian regularly tweets about the sport, particularly his beloved Boston Celtics, and often trains in basketball gear.
But… what about his own gaming skills? “I’m LeBron James,” Kyrgios quipped when asked by ATPTour.com to rate his own game in 2019. “I’m the best basketball player out of tennis players, therefore I’m LeBron.” While some of his ATP Tour rivals may have a say in the matter, Kyrgios continues to work on his skills whenever he has time for a game on Tour.
2. He Loves To Eat Sushi, But With A Few Extra Sides… Kyrgios enjoys a great atmosphere when he’s on the pitch, and the same is true when it comes to sitting down for his pre-match meals. The Australian, who does not eat meat or dairy, describes himself as a “pretty good” cook and especially likes Japanese-style food due to his social nature.
I like sushi because it’s like an event,” Kyrgios told ATPTour.com last year. “You go with your friends, your girlfriend or your partner, and it comes out in nice little plates, in nice little pieces, soy sauce, a couple of giggles here or there.
Is romantic.”
Kyrgios slams the media
Speaking about his bad-boy image in the tennis world, Nick Kyrgios recently slammed the media for only focusing on his moments of frustration on the court. “Well, I’m not thinking about it but I got told that it goes to charity,” Kyrgios said.
“As soon as they told me that, I was just trigger happy, I was just f*cking smacking [gestures smashing a racquet]. It’s unfair, in a way, because a match can go on for hours like at the US Open in the recent past, I played a match that went on for four hours, and the media showed the last 30 seconds of me smashing a racquet.
That’s what they choose to put out globally,” he said. “It’s like what happened to the other four-hour segment when I was trying my nuts off at 2 am in the morning. They just choose to show when I’m getting frustrated,” he added.
