Nick Kyrgios: "I don't think I've got anything left to prove in my career"
Defending runner-up Nick Kyrgios will show up at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships with only one match played this calendar year, a loss at the hands of Yibing Wu at Stuttgart.
Injuries and rehabilitation have kept the Aussie on the sidelines for almost the entirety of the year, but true to character, Kyrgios hasn't lost any of his usual swagger.
Having achieved a handful of impressive feats over the course of a career that blew hot and cold, the 28-year-old doesn't believe he has anything left to prove anymore. In addition to reaching his maiden Grand Slam singles final at Wimbledon last year, he won the doubles title at the Australian Open.
“I don't think I've got anything left to prove in my career to be honest. I’ve beaten some amazing players, won some really big tournaments, [made the] final of a Grand Slam, won a doubles Grand Slam. I feel like now, this is why you work. So you can actually have fun and just enjoy it,” Nick Kyrgios said in an interview with ATPTour.com.
Turning his attention to this year's campaign at SW19, which he begins against David Goffin, the World No. 33 reckons there is no pressure on him for the simple reason that he is at his lethal best when most relaxed.
The Aussie believes that while most players take on more pressure after getting good results, he is the opposite -- the better runs he has, the more relaxed he becomes.
“I know what I need to do to be successful. I think all the pressure is off me, to be honest. I think that people always say once you have results, that's when the pressure starts kicking in," Kyrgios said.
"But for me, it's been the reverse my whole career. When I've won tournaments or when I've done really well, it's almost the opposite. It's almost like you've proven yourself and now you can actually just relax and have some fun with it," he added.
"I was one short but I'm not sad about saying I lost to the greatest player of all time and gave him a real match" - Nick Kyrgios on Wimbledon 2022 final loss to Novak Djokovic
Throwing back to the 2022 Wimbledon final, Nick Kyrgios stormed to take the first set against Novak Djokovic before the Serb found his footing to wrap up the contest in four sets and take home his seventh title at the tournament.
Kyrgios has no regrets about the loss, especially considering the fight he gave someone he considers "the greatest of all time." The former World No. 13, in fact, spoke about reaching the championship round as a "special feeling" and looked forward to seeing what he can do at SW19 this time around.
“I think it's the fact that you've done all the work over your life to actually post the result of that tournament, that's going to be remembered for the rest of your life. It’s a pretty special feeling. I think every tennis player, at the end of day, works so hard to have one of those results at a Grand Slam," Nick Kyrgios said.
“I was one short but I'm not sad about saying I lost to the greatest player of all time and gave him a real match. It’s going to be good walking there for the first time [this year] and there's going be a lot of media attention around it as well. So let’s see how it goes,” he added.