Australian Open: Nick Kyrgios - "I won't play without a spectator"
Nick Kyrgios was not entirely dissatisfied with the overall situation after his defeat by Dominic Thiem at the Australian Open 2021 . The Australian is not likely to travel.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Feb 13, 2021, 09:11 am
The 2021 tennis season has just started for Nick Kyrgios - and the Australian could say goodbye to the traveling circus until further notice. He will certainly not force himself to go to tournaments where he first has to be in quarantine for a week and then play in front of empty grandstands, said the Australian after his five-set loss to Dominic Thiem in the third round of the Australian Open 2021. Under these conditions the tournament planning could of course be pretty thin for Kyrgios: Who knows where spectators will actually be allowed again, maybe in Doha and Dubai. In Melbourne itself, there is silence until at least Wednesday.
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The man from Canberra took note of the elimination against Thiem in a sporty fair manner: "He just played better." The match itself was a lot of fun for him. "I've played a lot of big matches on big stages," Kyrgios continued. And it didn't feel like he'd been gone for a year. More like a week. "An atmosphere like today is obviously something special, and not many people get the chance to play in one. I'm behind with a break in the fifth set - and the fans are freaking out. That makes me smile." But otherwise? He did not miss tennis, Kyrgios repeated his statement from a few days ago.
But once Nick Kyrgios has to work. And then for the second time in camera. On Friday, Kyrgios won with buddy Thanasi Kokkinakis, who was defeated by two Stefanos Tsitsipas in the singles round (also in five sets), against Julian Knowle and Lloyd Harris in two sets. Now it is up to Wesley Kohlhof and Lukasz Kubot, who were seeded in fourth place.
Here is the individual tableau at the Australian Open
laver arena