Speaking to esteemed tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou, Nick Kyrgios rued missing out on the chance to win his first singles Grand Slam title.
During his latest episode of the 'Good Trouble' podcast, the Australian tennis star Kyrgios was picking the brains of the best in the business, asking what would have been had he managed to overcome all-time great Novak Djokovic in the 2022 Wimbledon final.
Playing in his first and only Grand Slam singles final, the man from Down Under came as close as a set and a half from beating the Serb, with the final score ending 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(3).
He believes that had he beaten the seven-time Wimbledon champion on Centre Court, his name would have a better reputation, with people focusing much less on the antics that gained him attention when he first started out on the ATP Tour.
"I knew that everything would change. That’s crazy, because you know, I was only a set and a half away from winning, and becoming tennis immortality. You win a Grand Slam, no-one cares about what you do any more... Yeah, that sucked. I would have loved to have been sitting here as a Grand Slam champion."
The pair's discussion also led them to uncover the reality that, as is customary in the sport of tennis, only a few singular points can change the entire course of a match and, in this case, one's career.
Coach Mouratoglou was keen to point out to Kyrgios that, had he won that July day, “No one would say you are wasting your talent." If there was one thing that finishing runner-up in the Wimbledon final taught the Aussie, it was that it has fuelled his desire to be at the top of the sport.
Currently out of action due to injury, the former Australian number one has switched his focus to ending his career on a high, with him looking ahead to the 2024 US Open as a tournament he may target to come back.
Still, fans started to speculate about a possible future career for the Australian, with the BBC recently getting him on board for their coverage of the tournament at SW19 this summer.
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