“I’d rather give my spot away”: Nick Kyrgios steps aside from Aussie Open singles to focused on doubles

Nick Kyrgios confirmed on social media that he will not compete in the singles draw at the Australian Open, stating that he does not feel ready to play five-set matches. However, the 30-year-old did confirm that he will be in Melbourne to contest the doubles main draw.

Tournament organisers still have several wildcards to confirm for the men’s singles draw, with Kyrgios long seen as one of the names who could potentially receive an invitation. Other possibilities have also been circulating, including former champion Stan Wawrinka, who admitted a few days ago that he had no information on whether he would be granted a wildcard or not.

Kyrgios played a couple of exhibition matches during the off-season, but his level failed to fully convince. His appearance in Brisbane was seen as a key opportunity to assess where he stood at the start of the season—something Tennis Australia could take into account when deciding whether to allocate one of their wildcard spots to him.

The former Wimbledon runner-up returned to action on Tuesday against American Aleksandar Kovacevic (No. 58), with the American claiming a straightforward 6–3, 6–4 victory. It marked Kyrgios’ first official singles match since March 2024, having played only a handful of matches across the past three seasons.

Amid speculation surrounding Kyrgios’ potential appearance in the Australian Open singles draw—along with voices such as Greg Rusedski arguing that wildcards should go to players fully prepared to compete over five sets—Kyrgios himself addressed the situation. On Friday, he clarified via social media that he had spoken with tournament organisers and decided to withdraw from consideration for the singles draw.

“After some good conversations with TA, I’ve made the call to focus on doubles for this year’s AO,” the former world No. 13 posted on his Instagram stories. “I’m fit and back on court, but 5-setters are a different beast and I’m not quite ready to go the distance yet.”

“This tournament means everything to me, but I’d rather give my spot to someone who’s ready to make their moment count. It’s all building blocks and I’ll be back next year and pumped to compete. See you out there.”

Kyrgios already featured in doubles in Brisbane, teaming up with close friend Thanasi Kokkinakis, who has also dealt with injuries over the past year and was returning to competition after undergoing pectoral surgery. The local duo—Australian Open champions in 2022—recorded an impressive first-round win over doubles specialists Rajeev Ram and Matthew Ebden, both former world No. 1s in the discipline. However, they fell in the second round to sixth seeds Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul.

While Kyrgios and Kokkinakis have not yet been officially confirmed as a pairing, all signs point to the Special K’s reuniting once again at Melbourne Park.