Nick Kyrgios elaborates on dealing with the pressure to perform well at 2023 Australian Open - "Being in the spotlight is not easy"

Aussie tennis star Nick Kyrgios has stated his goals and expectations ahead of the 2023 season and addressed the added pressure he might face ahead of his home Grand Slam, the Australian Open.

In an interview with Eurosport, Kyrgios said that while tennis players do not feel a lot of pressure given that they get paid well to travel across the globe and explore different cultures, playing at home can come with their own set of problems.

The former World No.13, who reached his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon this year, said fans in his country see him as a "legitimate" contender for Major titles and that adds to the pressure.

“In real life, there’s not much pressure to being a professional tennis player," he disclosed. "We earn great money, we travel around the world with our favorite people. We get to see different people, different cultures. In the scheme of things, that’s not pressure.

"But I completely understand going on the match court with all this expectation that ‘Nick Kyrgios is legitimate chance to win a Grand Slam now’, there’s a lot of pressure there especially having the Australian Open and everyone in Australia expecting big things from me. It’s a lot to handle sometimes. Being in the spotlight is not easy."