Kyrgios wants to 'shut up' doubters with grand slam win

Nick Kyrgios is planning to make a comeback in December and has ambitions to win a grand slam in order to "shut up" his doubters.

The Australian has suffered with wrist, knee and foot injuries over the last two years, playing just one ATP Tour singles match in that period.

He lost in straight sets on that occasion to Wu Yibing in Stuttgart in June 2023 and has not played since.

Though he has hinted at retirement in the past, he is now planning for his return at the World Tennis League event in Abu Dhabi later this year before the Australian Open in January.

He has previously reached one grand slam final in singles, losing in four sets to Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon in 2022, and Kyrgios has a clear plan of what he wants to come out of his return to the sport.

"I am coming back because something is keeping me around the game," he told News Corp's Code Sports podcast.

"I have beaten pretty much every person that has been put in front of me, made a final of a grand slam, won a doubles title in a grand slam, won multiple titles and made money.

"But I think the one thing that is now on my target is a grand slam. I think that will be the only thing that will shut people up at the end of the day.

"That'll be my deep motivation."

Rafa don’t retire I wanna play you 1 last time

— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) October 10, 2024

Kyrgios earned a reputation for his outbursts and meltdowns early on in his career, with some writing him off due to his temperament.

However, the 29-year-old has brushed off the idea that he was a "bad boy".

"I guess I was branded that just because I was a bit outside the circle of what a normal tennis player is," he said.

"I don't think I carry that perception with the Aussie public anymore. But at the start of my career, people thought I was like a murderer."