Nick Kyrgios has thanked his fans after he hit 4.2 million followers on Instagram, a number which has already risen to 4.3. The Australian player also hinted that he could be returning to the sport soon.

The 2022 Wimbledon finalist has been absent from the sport for most of the 2023 season due to injury.

Kyrgios withdrew from the Australian Open back in January on the eve of the tournament before undergoing left knee arthroscopic surgery which saw him miss the French Open.

However, his comeback at the Stuttgart Open in June was unsuccessful as the 28-year-old lost his first round against Yibing Wu in straight sets. He then withdrew from the Halle Open before pulling out of Wimbledon a year after he finished as runner-up at the grasscourt major.

Moreover, Kyrgios later announced that he would not be competing at the 2023 US Open and is yet to give a date for his return to the sport.

Nevertheless, the Australian, who is very active on social media, hit an off-court milestone by reaching 4.2 million followers on his Instagram page which has a total of 1,153 posts.

"4.2 milly ," followed by a love heart, a prayer hands and a crown emoji, "appreciate the love & support I'll be back soon," Kyrgios captioned his Instagram Story.

The final part of his caption hints at a return to the sport in the imminent future.

Well-known tennis coach Darren Cahill previosuly spoke of his hopes for Kyrgios to return to the ATP Tour soon.

"We need him back. It's you know the game is bigger than any one player of course but certainly he’s a loss to the sport at the moment and if he’s playing well and physically feeling good he brings a lot to every tournament he plays. So I’m just wishing him the best. I hope he gets healthy and we hope to see him back really soon," Cahill said.