Nick Kyrgios will end his tennis hiatus at this year’s US hard-court swing, according to a new source.
Kyrgios has played just one match since the start of the 2023 season. In that time, he battled knee and wrist injuries. His injury layoff began in January of last season, when he withdrew from all tournaments during the Australian summer, including the Australian Open.
Kyrgios underwent knee surgery but did not provide a timescale for his return. Eventually, he rejoined the tour during the grass-court swing, playing just one match, a straight-sets defeat to Yibing Wu in Stuttgart.
On the eve of Wimbledon, Kyrgios announced that he was withdrawing from the tournament because of a wrist injury and required ample recovery time before returning. He wouldn't play for the rest of the year.
In his time away from the tour, Kyrgios tapped into a new hobby: punditry and podcasting. He was a co-commentator for the Tennis Channel at the 2023 ATP Finals in Turin and worked with Eurosport at the 2024 Australian Open.
His fresh voice and insightful analysis in the commentary booth earned him generous praise from the tennis community. He has since launched his podcast, Good Trouble With Nick Kyrgios, in which famous sporting personalities have appeared as guests.
Kyrgios shared an update on his progress in recent weeks when he hit the practice courts for the first time in a while. He was reportedly in line for a return on grass during the European summer.
But the tune has changed. In a tweet by Canadian journalist John Horn, Kyrgios appears to have postponed his comeback until the North American hard-court swing, which begins in earnest in late July.
His schedule remains discreet. The Australian qualifies for a protected ranking and can activate it when he joins the tour at some point this season to play major tournaments like Cincinnati and the US Open.