Nick Kyrgios on the demanding tennis calendar: "Don't think it's healthy"
Nick Kyrgios recently reaffirmed his earlier claim that he would retire from tennis if he won a Grand Slam title as the sport is too demanding.
The Australian, who is now considered a strong contender for Major titles given his impressive performances at the Wimbledon Champions and US Open in 2022, opened up about the stress of being in the spotlight and the hardships he faces as a result of being away from his family for the majority of the year.
The 27-year-old stated that traveling the world and competing in various tournaments resulted in him missing many family milestones. He even reemphasized his earlier claim of walking away from the sport if he gets his hands on a Slam title.
“Honestly, I probably would (retire if I won a Slam). Especially being from Australia as well, there’s just so much travel, so much time away from family, so much time away from friends. You’re just missing milestones in the family, you’re just not having a normal life really,” he told Eurosport.
Kyrgios believes that being Australian, he spends very little time at home when compared with European and American players.
“It’s easy for a European or an American player to lose or win a tournament, then you take a five-hour flight back home and you spend a week there before the next event. Whereas as an Australian, you’re doing like four to seven months travel blocks. Honestly, I don’t think it’s healthy. No other real athlete does that in the world, in any sport. Doing seven months on your own," he stated.
“People are like, why are you complaining about it or whatnot? It’s not what they think. You’re living out of a suitcase, at hotels, it’s not like you’re on holiday. You’ve got to go to tennis courts, train; the lifestyle is quite vigorous. If it probably happens (winning a Slam), I probably would (retire) to be honest,” he added.
"The more success you have, the more demands you have off the court" - Nick Kyrgios
Nick Kyrgios had a standout 2022 season, reaching his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon and winning his first doubles Major with Thanasi Kokkinakis at the Australian Open, which raised the bar for him going into the 2023 season.
The World No. 22 recently stated that he is stressed and exhausted because the more success he has, the more the expectations are thrown at him.
“It was probably easier in a sense where, if you’re winning, winning makes everything easier. I’m exhausted honestly. Just stressful. The more you win, the more success you have, the more demands you have off the court. People expect more from you. It’s been a stressful year that’s for sure. I probably handled things a lot better. A lot of stress, but it’s been fun as well,” Nick Kyrgios said.