"Nah 250’s on clay is where it’s at" - Nick Kyrgios takes sly dig at tour calendar, backs Eugenie Bouchard, Andy Roddick's call for longer grass swing
Nick Kyrgios has weighed in on the recent discourse about the length of grass swing on the ATP and WTA Tour. The Australian has sided with Eugenie Bouchard and Andy Roddick in their call for more and bigger grass court tournaments.
Bouchard and Roddick recently appeared on the Tennis Channel and questioned why there aren't more high-level grass tournaments. Bouchard expressed her desire for bigger tournaments on grass to honor tennis's history and tradition.
Roddick pointed out the disparity between the two 10-day Masters 1000 events leading up to Roland Garros and the lack of similar events before Wimbledon, arguing that both tours are shortchanging grass court specialists.
On the 2024 ATP and WTA Tour, grass swing has been allotted three weeks before the Wimbledon Championships. The WTA has three 500-level tournaments, and the ATP has two. In comparison, there were seven weeks of clay court tournaments in the lead-up to the French Open.
Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios agreed with Eugenie Bouchard and Andy Roddick's viewpoints on the issue and took a sly dig at the ATP Tour for being more invested in the 250-level clay court tournament than having more grass competitions.
"Nah watching 250’s on clay is where it’s at," Kyrgios commented on Instagram.
Nick Kyrgios reached his maiden Grand Slam final at the Wimbledon Championships
Nick Kyrgios is amongst the most gifted tennis players, and his playing style is enhanced and more on display when he plays on grass. The Wimbledon Championships has been the Australian's most successful Grand Slam and he used his wide array of skills and shot-making when he reached his maiden Grand Slam final at the grass slam in 2022.
Nick Kyrgios was unseeded at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships and began his campaign with a five-set marathon win against wildcard Paul Jubb. The former World No. 13 then went on to defeat No. 26 Filip Krajinovic, No. 4 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, Brandon Nakashima, Cristian Garin, and Rafael Nadal (via walkover) to reach the final.
In the title contest, he faced defending champion Novak Djokovic and came up short 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (3). Since then, Kyrgios has not played much tennis. Injury and prolonged recovery have plagued the Australian's career, with his last tour-level match coming at the 2023 Stuttgart Open.