"People respect him, people fear him" - Kyrgios one of favourites at US Open says Macci
ATP
Rick Macci assessed Nick Kyrgios' chances ahead of the 2022 US Open, where he will be one of the favorites to win the title.
In 2022, Kyrgios played already in two Grand Slam finals. His first major final was in doubles at the Australian Open. He ended that tournament with the champion's trophy in his hands.
A few months later, the 27-year-old Australian took on Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon Championships final, and he will try to continue his great Grand Slam run also at the 2022 US Open.
He is among the favorites to win the trophy, mostly due to his great run at Wimbledon but also because he was able to follow up on that in North America.
Ahead of the New York Slam, legendary coach Rick Macci, who worked with the likes of Andy Roddick, Jennifer Capriati, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, and Venus Williams, spoke to Tennis Infinity also about Kyrgios.
"He's one of the five guys I would put in the equation to win it. People have to understand the way he serves the grass. Well, it helps any big server, but especially him, as he's so into the court, and he has a wicked slice, and he's a tall guy, so he won a lot of bang bang points. It will happen again on hard courts, but not as easily. So he's gonna have to play more."
According to Macci, Kyrgios is respected among his rivals because he can beat anyone. One thing the American coach is concerned about is the Australian's decision to play in doubles, as that might wear him down at Flushing Meadows. Still, he thinks Kyrgios is one of the favorites.
"You never know with Nick what's gonna happen. You know he's must see on TV but people respect him, people fear him. He's definitely a threat, but what I'm concerned about is he's probably gonna play doubles with [Thanasi] Kokkinakis."
"So if that happens, that's just a lot of tennis, not so much the physical because he seems like a great athlete, but it's also mental. But he's definitely, in my opinion, a contender. He'd be right up there. There's no doubt about it."
