Novak Djokovic Gives Brutal Reality Check to Nick Kyrgios With Career on Crossroads

Novak Djokovic expressed his wish to see Nick Kyrgios make his tennis comeback. Kyrgios has been dealing with a lot of injury problems, and even though he has returned to tennis after an 18-month injury hiatus, he is still struggling to play regularly.

Only four singles tournaments he has played so far this year and has clinched just one match win, in the Miami Open. But since his defeat in the second round of the Miami Open, Kyrgios has yet to feature in a singles event; though he played doubles with Gael Monfils at the Citi Open.

Although it’s uncertain what his next event will be, he will be featuring in a ‘Battle of the Sexes’, clashing with women’s No.1 Aryna Sabalenka. The date and venue of the same are not confirmed.

Djokovic, during an interview with Clay, said he is excited for the match and said he wants to see the Aussie finish his career on the court. The Serb also thinks the reason why Kyrgios has not achieved a lot of success is because of his lack of discipline.

Unfortunately, he didn’t have the discipline that was required, but if he had 30 percent – and he has five percent – he’d be Top 10 easily. He played a Wimbledon final without a warm-up, without serious training, without a coach, and beat all of us at the top.

Djokovic also revealed Kyrgios often goes to nightclubs and sends clips to him. The 24-time Grand Slam champion also wants his good friend to play at least next year’s Australian Open.

And while career uncertainty is looming over the 30-year-old, Djokovic is heading in the right direction. In spite of barely playing tournaments, he has now made it to the semifinals of every Grand Slam tournament this year. His semifinal opponent in the ongoing US Open is 2022 US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz.

Patrick Mouratoglou on the US Open final between Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz

Patrick Mouratoglou thinks Carlos Alcaraz has an edge over Novak Djokovic in terms of motivation levels. Mouratoglou questioned the 38-year-old how motivated he is to win the US Open, comparing his campaign to that of last year’s Paris Olympics, where Nole clinched his career’s first gold medal after a pair of tough sets against the five-time Grand Slam champion.