Wimbledon 2022 finalist Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has pulled out of the next Grand Slam in the tennis calendar- the French Open in June 2023 due to a knee injury. The 28-year-old had to go under the knife for a knee injury in January and even missed out on the Australian Open earlier this year. In fact, Kyrgios did not feature in any of the three ATP 1000 clay-court events before a confirmation from the man himself that he won't be playing the Roland Garros.
"It's not looking likely. We are trying everything we can to have Nick ready on court as soon as possible," Kyrgios's agent Daniel Horsfall said on Tuesday.
It is also being learned that the injury that the Aussie has sustained is so serious that he could miss the majority of 2023, even though an official update is awaited. This wasn't the original plan for the tennis ace who had hoped to regain match fitness in time to play French Open 2023. He was looking forward to travel to Paris for the Grand Slam competition with his girlfriend Costeen Hatzi.
Despite his best attempts to return to the professional tennis circuit, his comeback has been postponed once again and he would be looking forward to a comeback in Wimbledon where he had an outing to remember last year, finishing as the runners-up in men's singles after losing to Novak Djokovic 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-7 in the final.
If indeed he makes a comeback on the grasscourts, he would be hoping for a similar, if not better outcome this time around. However, it won't be an easy one especially on retun from a long injury layoff. Kyrgios last played an official tournament in October last year following which he hasn't been able to play competitive tennis.
Meanwhile, Australia's Thanasi Kokkinakis and Kim Birrell have been handed a wildcard entry into the French Open 2023.