Nick Kyrgios Australian Open hopes under threat as four more Aussies claim entry into major event

With the Australian Open fast approaching, the final gaps in the lineup are being organised. In total there are 16 wildcards who will be accepted into the event. Four have recently been announced, but the big exception is Nick Kyrgios.

There have been numerous questions and queries about the Aussie participating in his home Grand Slam. Once a regular in Melbourne, injuries have seen him firmly sit on the sidelines specifically down to his wrist and knee. He attempted to comeback multiple times in 2025. Thr first one came back at the start of the year with a lacklustre return to the Australian Open. He lost in the first round in straight sets to Jacob Fearnley before a reunion with Thanasi Kokkinakis did not bring success as they retired in their opening round clash.

The world number 671 has big ambitions to feature in this upcoming tournament in front of his home fans. The former world number 13 has played a number of exhibitions over the past month as he looks to regain his match sharpness and fitness for what he hopes is a consistent period playing among the best players in the world.

His return started at the Atlanta Cup. A long awaited return to the court saw him lose out to the talented Ben Shelton. A day later, it would be a different American to get the better of Kyrgios, this time Tommy Paul at the Garden Cup. Most recently, he has been in Bengaluru, India, with him competing in the World Tennis League. Teamed up with Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk for the Kites, he played three double matches without victory as his team managed to just squeeze into the final to face the imperious Eagles. However, he managed to pick up a first win in the final enroute to Kites taking home glory. On December 28, he will compete in the contentious Battle of the Sexes against Aryna Sabalenka in Dubai. The controversial event will occur right before the start of the 2026 season, with his first ATP event confirmed.

While he has not yet secured a wildcard for the Australian Open, the 30-year-old will make a return to the Brisbane International. He kicked off last season in the tournament but it did not go to plan A trio of tiebreaks were played out between him and the also big serving Giovanni Mpetshi-Perricard. Teamed up with Novak Djokovic in the doubles, the duo narrowly lost out to the number one seeds Nikola Mektic and Michael Venus.

After the Battle of the Sexes, Kyrgios would have played just three singles matches. This has not put him in the peak condition after such a long period away from the court. The event will take place from January 5-11 with the likes of Daniil Medvedev, Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe, Grigor Dimitrov and Joao Fonseca all competing.

Kyrgios will have to wait to find out his destiny. A golden route into the main draw is severely under threat for the former Wimbledon finalist, but that is not the case for Rinky Hijikata, Priscilla Hon, Talia Gibson and Taylah Preston. The four Aussies boost the number of natives in the draw, up to 16 now with eight men and women already in the main draw.

Hijikata will be competing in a fourth consecutive Australian Open, something he is very excited for. “I’m very grateful to get another opportunity to play in the main draw at the AO,” he said. “There’s nothing better than competing at a home Slam and I’ve had some of my best memories in Melbourne. I can’t wait for the electric atmosphere in January.”

The Australian Open will commence from January 18 - February 1, with Kyrgios' participation still yet to be confirmed.