Nick Kyrgios discussed his tennis career in a recent interview with journalist Jemele Hill.
Kyrgios’s tennis ability got him to the top spot in the junior world ranking and secured a junior grand slam victory at the 2013 Australian Open.
The Australian quickly became a professional, and over time, he established himself as a player with a unique yet explosive style of play. As a result of his development, he was ranked in the top 15 on the ATP Tour in 2016.
But Kyrgios was also controversial because of his intense on-court attitude. He would regularly get into fights with umpires and other players, racking up severe penalties and suspensions. The Australian has also frequently stated how much he loves basketball and how little he cares about tennis.
During a recent interview on his talk show, the 28-year-old talked about his tennis journey with Hill.
Kyrgios expressed his thoughts about his tennis career and said: “I hated tennis. I grew up very fat and overweight as a kid and my mom saw that and said, ‘You need to be a bit active’. She dragged me down to the tennis courts and got me into tennis. I hated it. I was crying. It was traumatizing, to be honest.”
Hill then questioned Kyrgios about his decision to focus on tennis rather than basketball. He credited his parents with making the choice.
He added: “I guess my parents pushed me towards that dream of tennis. They love the sport, and in Australia, tennis is huge; it’s one of our biggest sports there. I know it’s not as big in America, and my parents didn’t have much growing up. They saw that I was talented and they saw that as a way of having a better life.”
Nick Kyrgios in 2024
Now ranked no.470, the Australian played his last match on the 13th of June 2023 when he was overcome by world no.249 Yibing Wu 7-5 6-3 in the 1st round in Stuttgart (draw).
At the moment, during this season Kyrgios achieved a compiled 0-1 match record.
