Nick Kyrgios is preparing for his return to the tennis courts at the end of August in the upcoming
Ultimate Tennis Showdown in New York. The former Wimbledon runner-up has only played one match in the last two years, back in the 2023 Stuttgart Open, where he was defeated by Yibing Wu.
The UTS New York will take place at the Forest Hills Stadium between August 22 and 23, just days before the US Open, and will feature several stars fine-tuning the last details before the fourth Grand Slam of the year.
Stefanos Tsitsipas,
Andrey Rublev, and
Alexander Bublik will be part of the stellar lineup.
Kyrgios returns to tennis in UTS
The UTS has been surprising fans worldwide for several years with small friendly tournaments that bring together some of the best players on the Tour. The event, created by
Patrick Mouratoglou—former coach of
Serena Williams,
Simona Halep, and Holger Rune—emerged after tennis was interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic and has continued as a unique event using a different format from those typically seen in ATP and ITF tournaments.
Unlike previous occasions where a round-robin format was used, this time the tournament will start with the quarterfinals on August 22, featuring matches between Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Bublik, followed by
Alex De Minaur versus Denis Shapovalov. The night session will have Andrey Rublev facing
Gael Monfils, although the most anticipated match is likely the one scheduled right after them.
Nick Kyrgios is set to face
Casper Ruud, closing out the incredible first day of UTS in New York. Although it is not an official tournament, the Australian will make his first high-level public appearance. During the last Wimbledon, the Australian was working as a television commentator and offered to train with Djokovic at the All England Club, which happened during the first week of the competition, where they shared a practice session.
Although at one point Kyrgios seemed closer to retirement, everything indicates that the Australian could soon return to high-level competition. In addition to participating in the UTS, Kyrgios has hinted that he might play some doubles tournaments to test his level before fully resuming his career at the age of 29.
