Nick Kyrgios: "There was a point where I was almost done with the sport"
ATP
It's been a journey full of ups and downs for Nick Kyrgios, but he enjoys the fruits of his hard work at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships.
After his sensational breakthrough in 2014 that was backed by another Grand Slam quarter-final in 2015, Kyrgios struggled to make it to the last eight at a Grand Slam tournament again.
However, in 2022, he's been enjoying probably the best season of his career when he triumphed in doubles at the 2022 Australian Open, and now he can also win his first singles Grand Slam title at Wimbledon.
After his semi-final win, the Australian player reflected on the low points of his tennis career and how far he got since then.
"I was just thinking how things can change. There was a point where I was almost done with the sport. Obviously I posted this year about the kind of mental state I was in in 2019 when I was at the Australian Open with self-harm and suicidal thoughts and stuff."
"I’m sitting there today after the match...to be a semi-finalist at Wimbledon, it's a special accomplishment for everyone, but I think especially for me."
"If you had asked anyone if I was able to do that the last couple years, I think everyone would have probably said, ‘No, he doesn't have the mental capacity, he doesn't have the fitness capacity, he doesn't have the discipline’, all that."
While Kyrgios made it already to the semi-final of the grass-court major, he wants to go further. He sees the trophy is very close, but his next opponent won't be an easy one, as he'll have to take on the 22-time Grand Slam champion, Rafael Nadal.
"I almost started doubting myself with all that traffic coming in and out of my mind. I just sat there today and soaked it all in. But at the same time I feel like I don't want to stop here either."
"To be able to do this, I just feel like I'm more mature. I think earlier in my career if I made a third, fourth, or quarter-finals, I'd be on my phone a lot, I would be engaging online a lot, would be keen to go out to dinner and explore or just do things to kind of, not necessarily soak in the achievement… but just not conservatively just go back to my house at Wimbledon with my team, put my feet up, get treatment and eat, get good rest."
