Nick Kyrgios has cast doubt on whether he will appear in the Australian Open, having confirmed a new injury.
The Australian had been due to play in an exhibition match alongside Novak Djokovic on Thursday, but pulled out due to an abdominal injury.
Kyrgios reached the Wimbledon final in 2022 and made his return to action at the Brisbane International last week, having played only one singles match since knee and wrist surgery in October 2022.
The 29-year-old announced his withdrawal from the exhibition match on his Instagram page, posting that he would be "resting and doing everything I can to be OK by the AusOpen” ahead of it starting on Sunday.
Down week now!!!! Gotta rest the wrist and hope that all will be well for the AO hope you all were entertained pic.twitter.com/jLAfHOHIa2
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) January 2, 2025
The news will be a worry to those in the Kyrgios camp following his first-round defeat to Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the Brisbane International, which left him "throbbing in pain".
He also suggested that he was 'feeling like he had been hit by a bus' following doubles with Djokovic in the same tournament.
“I think I almost need a miracle, and I need the stars to align for my wrist to hold up in a grand slam, for sure,” he said after his singles defeat.
“For my wrist, it’s all new ground now. It’s very sore… we were expecting that. Today is another building block in the journey.”
