This article discusses Nick Kyrgios's possible retirement from tennis after his first-round exit at the Australian Open. It also highlights early upsets and notable performances in the tournament, emphasizing the unpredictable nature of the sport and the challenges players face.
is here. We are doing daily “Quick Served” podcast episodes breaking down all the action from the Australian Open. Also—good soldiering—subscribe to the podcast and the • More good soldiering: Lindsay Davenport, Martina Navratilova, Steve Weissman, Prakash Amritraj and I are doing the Tennis Channel pregame shows each day at 5 p.
m. ET until first ball. Modesty aside, they are a lot of fun.• Good on Madison Keys, Jessica Pegula, and Donna Vekić for their role in acknowledging the Los Angeles Fires and providinglistener and a big Ben fan, I'm sitting here with my first cup of coffee this morning having a wee gloat that Shelton beat Nakashima in straights. It wasn't pretty; but Ben was helped by Nakashima not bearing down at critical moments. A good first match for Ben nevertheless. I agree with you that Nakashima has a huge upside. Not just yet though.• Thanks. Yes, I thought Nakashima had a real chance at an upset over Shelton. Some of these picks come through Some don’t. It’s all part of the fun. That match wasn’t particularly close. It wasn’t simply that Shelton brought to bear his lefty serve and his athleticism. He was the better player when it mattered most. But it’s a reminder of how thin these margins are. How unpredictable this sport can be. How the smallest factors can loom large. That’s an early takeaway from this event. Peyton Stearns can serve for the win against Navarro … and lose 16 of the last 19 points. João Fonseca can look totally unbothered as a teenager playing a solid seed in a best-of-five match, and announce himself by taking down Andrey Rublev. Other bright prospects can reveal that there are still rough edges in need of sanding down. Some players thrive on off-court chaos, as matches become sanctuaries. Others need order in their personal lives before they can impose order on their tennis. All of which is to say … have sympathy and empathy for the players. Marvel at them, as they overcome so much more than big serves and the ground strokes of their opponents. Don’t gloat over good picks or stew over bad ones. Because the smallest variable can change everything. Love these Quick Served episodes. Real questions: 1) Do players wear sunscreen? I feel like I never see them putting it on and no one is ever burnt! They are definitely more sun-acclamated than us NARPs. • The short answer is yes. A) Because we should all respect the sun. B) Because avoiding sunburn is one more control-what-you-can-control variable. Whether it’s applied in the locker room or before players reach the venue, yes, most will wear sunblock. It’s funny you mention this: On Monday, the Aussie Open cameras caught Stearns applying her sunblock. Also, we noticed that Michelsen had a sunburned nose after beating Tsitsipas. That it was only his nose suggests he missed a spot … but otherwise applied sunblock accordingly. Kyrgios fell to Jacob Fearnley in straight sets in the opening round of the Australian Open. / Graham Denholm/Getty Images) Jon, I saw Nick Kyrgios say that he may have played his last singles match in Australia. I’m not sure what that means but where does Kyrgios go from here? Is there a chance he retires?• A number of you wrote in about Kyrgios. I appreciate some of your supportive messages, but I have zero interest in getting into a food fight with a player. The short answer to this question: only he knows. Armitraj made a really salient point on our Tennis Channel show this week, asking, “What is his why?” Why is he doing this? What’s his motivation? What is his willingness to work? What’s his health? You can’t just rock up and win best-of-five matches, much less tournaments. The flip side: Given his talent level is so extraordinary—with full health and full commitment; and the two are inextricably linked—only a fool would consider him past his sell-by date at 29 years old. One point I would impress upon him, were I a member of his team: He is misplaced in this thinking that he is the tennis outcast and that the school administrators and the goody-goody honor students want to see him expelled. No one wants to see him leave the sport. Many wish he would be more judicious on social media. Fine. But virtually nobody thinks the sport is better without him. And everyone wishes for his full health.• This was sent from a high school classmate and fellow tennis team member who asked not to be named. And, ironically, we competed—with little success—against Carmel High, alma mater of Basavareddy Anyway, how good is Basavareddy? It’s hard to say. The kid is 19. But there’s so much to like here. He has a solid game. A real feel for tactics. A uniform chorus ofwhen asked about his personality. He possesses comfort on the big stage and an absence of awe when playing Novak Djokovic. I think we still need some more data points before hanging a future ranking on him. But there is a resemblance to Navarro. Transitioning from college to the pros without much friction, Basavareddy has already won a lot of matches. And he’s just starting. Will Paolini—a journeywoman for much of her career—regress to the mean? Or was 2024 a bona fide breakthrough and she will remain a force? Honestly, I’m a little surprised how much skepticism seems to exist around the 29-year-old. At one point, she was lower with the Australian Open oddsmakers than Karolína Muchová, whom we all love, but is ranked more than 10 spots lower. Without being naïve to the math or sports trends, I tend to go guardedly optimistic here. She is a sleek athlete. She is a versatile player, who can play on any surface—note her back-to-back finals on clay and grass. Is she still in the top five eight months from now? Maybe not. That’s a lot of points to defend—even for a defender par excellence. Does she make the WTA Finals in Riyadh? Maybe. Does she revert to a player lucky to win a round or two at the majors? No way. Paolini defeated Sijia Wei in straight sets to kick off her Australian Open campaign. / IMAGO/ABACAPRESS• Granted we’re barely halfway through the first month of 2025, but Monfils has been one of the more joyous stories to start the year. At 38, he wins a title in Auckland, New Zealand . He did so with his typical flourish but also wisdom and patience, two commodities he sometimes lacked earlier in his career. And then he started his Australian Open campaign by taking out Perricard,It is a good reminder of the depth of story lines, too. We should be top-heavy. Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff and Djokovictake up a lot of oxygen. But in most sports, there are still rabid fan bases and sources of great joy, even if the team doesn’t win the championship. The same goes here. Enough with the playing time police. If they shorten the season, all we would see is . Let the players decide when/if they play. As a fan, I love watching tennis, and I enjoy the variety, players up and down the rankings and from all over the world. Put your police cap away• This was in response to the usual gripe that tennis’s offseason is insufficient. I don’t disagree with the idea that we should defer to the players. complaining. It’s absurd that the season foot faults its way into December. And then, the next season necessitates that players leave home before Christmas. Sorry, that’s nuts on so many levels. Players need time to recover physically and spiritually. Fans need time to anticipate. The optics are terrible. That tennis forces virtually all players to board planes and cross borders and time zones makes the relentless schedule all the more brutal. New York, Monday, 9:30 p.m. No tennis on TV because ESPN can't be bothered. What do they prefer to broadcast instead? On ESPN and ESPN2, both channels are showing the• I get that the NFL is king. I get that tennis’s tonnage is as much a curse as a blessing. I get that there is a push to streaming. I get that the Australian Open is particularly problematic given the time zones. But I don’t get broadcasting the same event simultaneously on multiple networks.Jon Wertheim is a senior writer for Sports Illustrated and has been part of the full-time SI writing staff since 1997, largely focusing on the tennis beat , sports business and social issues, and enterprise journalism. In addition to his work at SI, he is a correspondent for "60 Minutes" and a commentator for The Tennis Channel. He has authored 11 books and has been honored with two Emmys, numerous writing and investigative journalism awards, and the Eugene Scott Award from the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Wertheim is a longtime member of the New York Bar Association , the International Tennis Writers Association and the Writers Guild of America. He has a bachelor's in history from Yale University and received a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He resides in New York City with his wife, who is a divorce mediator and adjunct law professor. They have two children.
TENNIS AUSTRALIAN OPEN NICK KYRGIOS ANDREJ RUBLEV PEYTON STEANS JOAO FONSECA
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Rolex honors anniversary of Rod Laver Arena ahead of Australian OpenWith a roster of star athletes, including Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner and Chinese tennis player Qinwen Zheng, representing the Swiss watchmaker, it continues to play a pivotal role in celebrating the sport's finest moments.
Read more »
Simona Halep gets a wild-card entry for Australian Open qualifyingTwo-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep and Lleyton Hewitt's 16-year-old son Cruz Hewitt are among the players who have been awarded wild-card entries for Australian Open qualifying. Tennis Australia announced the wild-card recipients on Wednesday. Qualifying begins on Jan. 6.
Read more »
Zheng Qinwen withdraws from United Cup to focus on Australian OpenOlympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen has announced she will not play at the United Cup mixed-teams tournament starting later this month, opting instead to focus on preparations for the 2025 season’s first Grand Slam.
Read more »
Nick Taylor Wins Sony Open in PlayoffCanadian golfer Nick Taylor claimed victory at the Sony Open in a playoff against Nico Echavarria, becoming the first Canadian to win the tournament in its history.
Read more »
Fearnley Stuns Kyrgios in Australian Open UpsetWorld No. 92, Fearnley, defeated Nick Kyrgios in straight sets at the Australian Open, ending the Australian's hopes for a strong tournament run. Kyrgios struggled with injuries and form, while Fearnley showcased impressive serving and composure.
Read more »
Nick Kyrgios Advances at Australian OpenNick Kyrgios of Australia defeated Jacob Fearnley of Britain in the first round of the Australian Open.
Read more »