Kyrgios Says He Was Not Dropped By ESPN In Response To Controversial Journalist
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Nick Kyrgios has responded to a journalist on social media who mentioned that he would not be on ESPN's commentary team for the 2025 Australian Open.
Kyrgios played just his second ATP tournament since the end of 2022 at the Brisbane International. He lost his singles match to the huge-serving Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in a deciding-set tie-break.
The 29-year-old also played doubles with Novak Djokovic. They narrowly won their opening match but lost in the next round despite holding an 8-6 lead in the deciding 10-point tiebreak.
Kyrgios gave a concerning update after losing to Mpetshi Perricard. He admitted that his troublesome wrist, the main reason the controversial figure barely played in recent years, was sore after the match.
Because of his issues, the 2022 Wimbledon runner-up could not definitively state whether he would compete at the Australian Open. Kyrgios underwent wrist reconstruction surgery, which allowed him to return to professional tennis.
Jon Wertheim has been a well-known sports journalist for many years. He is also regularly featured on Andy Roddick's podcast and is a close friend of the 2003 US Open champion, who values his insights into various issues.
Wertheim was also a Tennis Channel contributor. However, the channel suspended him after he made an unsavory remark about Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova's appearance when he thought the cameras were not rolling.
Krejcikova did not hide how angry Wertheim's remarks made her and publicly slammed him for them. The journalist apologized for the comments and retained his place on Roddick's podcast despite being suspended by the Tennis Channel.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Wertheim revealed that Kyrgios would not be on ESPN's commentary team for the Australian Open. However, the network did not give an official reason for that move.
"Read into this what you will, but Nick Kyrgios will *not* be part of the ESPN @AustralianOpen 2025 broadcast team."
Wertheim's tweet could be interpreted in two ways. The American might have meant it indicated that Kyrgios would play at the Australian Open because the two-time Citi Open champion would not be on the broadcast team if he competed in Melbourne.
Another interpretation was Wertheim implying that ESPN might have sacked Kyrgios because of his controversial comments on subjects like Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek's doping cases.
Based on his response, Kyrgios thought Wertheim meant the latter of these two explanations. The former doubles champion at the Australian Open confirmed he planned to play in the singles and doubles at his home Grand Slam, making it impossible for him to work for ESPN.
"Uhhhh because Iām playing singles and doubles - slow media day huh šš"
Kyrgios often delivers fiery responses on social media, and this was another case. Although Wertheim caused anger with his comments about Krejcikova, it was clear he did not mean to cause any issues in his initial tweet.
If Kyrgios plays at the Australian Open, his doubles partner in Melbourne should be his good friend Thanasi Kokkinakis.
