By Scoop Malinowski
The tennis world wondered for years when (or if) Nick Kyrgios would mature from the enigmatic “waste of talent” to Grand Slam champion inspiring figure.
2022 has been the year the 27 year old has galvanized all of his qualities, weapons and potential into becoming arguably the best player – or at least the most dynamic and exciting tennis player – in the world right now.
âThis year’s been amazing in so many different ways. For my tennis, I kind of wanted to almost reinvent myself, get back to the top of the game where I know I belong.”
âWinning Washington, winning so many matches, I just feel like I thought the pressure would be off me after winning Wimbledon. He’s a Wimbledon finalist, he’s nearly-over-the-hump-type thing. For me, personally, I didn’t think I’d be putting this amount of pressure on myself. Every day I come in, I watch what I eat, I try and get sleep. Like every practice session I try and have good intent.”
Curiously, Kyrgios seems to have forgotten the importance and spark he received from winning the Australian Open doubles title with pal Thanassi Kokkinakis in January. That seemed to be the real turning point moment of the Kyrgios career. So many great players never won a Grand Slam – Marcelo Rios, Tommy Haas, Greg Rusedski, Todd Martin, Tomas Berdych, Gael Monfils, David Ferrer, James Blake, Nikolay Davydenko – but now Kyrgios really is a Grand Slam champion.
âI almost don’t know who I am anymore, to be honest, because that’s not me. Trying to balance so many different things out. It’s hard as well. The media, the fans are crazy everywhere I go. I’m trying to balance my personal life as well as my tennis. It’s just a lot. I feel like I’m really professional right now. I never thought that the Wimbledon final would make me that way. I thought it would be the other way, the reverse, almost a bit lax and a bit chilled with it.”
Nick Kyrgios will play top seed Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round at the 2022 US Open tomorrow.
Nick Kyrgios · Nike · US Open · Wimbledon · Yonex
George · September 4, 2022 at 9:24 am
Can you stay calm enough to beat Medvedev in a best of five set match?
Will be bringing my popcorn and enjoying this one.
Scoop Malinowski · September 4, 2022 at 9:58 am
Kyrgios has handled Medvedev, he will do it again.
Scoop Malinowski · September 5, 2022 at 7:32 am
Kyrgios beats the world no. 1 Medvedev again. Nick may be the best player in the world right now with Novak on ban.
George · September 5, 2022 at 11:18 am
He gets one or two free points each game with serve and aggressive return. Difficult to beat if he plays that way. But no one has more mental strength than Nadal. Will be a great final with Nadal or Alcaraz.
Scoop Malinowski · September 5, 2022 at 1:38 pm
George, An even more fascinating final if Kyrgios tries to mind game Rafa and irritate him like Soderling did. Hope the Rafa vs Carlito showdown will be authentic and not some kind of in house Spanish deal.
Scoop Malinowski · September 5, 2022 at 2:16 pm
Jessica Pegula makes third GS QF of 2022 by beating Kvitova in SS but it’s Coco who gets the vast majority of all the media attention, promotion and endorsements. Why is that?
George · September 5, 2022 at 2:28 pm
Neither have a cover girl face like Raducanu.
Gauff has an angry, pissed off, sourpuss face most of the time. Nasty look in my opinion.
George · September 5, 2022 at 2:32 pm
USTA is run by vile leftists:
https://au.sports.yahoo.com/us-open-2022-elena-rybakina-centre-disrespectful-drama-221032199.html
Scoop Malinowski · September 5, 2022 at 4:58 pm
The biases, agendas, hypocrisy, greed and blatant unfair play is ruining tennis. It must be exposed and condemned
Harold · September 6, 2022 at 10:31 am
Scoop, Sam, and George,( sorry if I left out any Right Wingers)are on a mission to make tennis great again. Good Luck with that. Honestly, it is a bit much âŚThe Serena hype was BS, because they glossed over her bitchy history. The woman actually told photographers not to look at her, while taking pictures.
The Coco thing, my only complaint is, they decided when she was 14, sheâs never going to play on an outside court, which is unfair to her competitors. She has proven worthy of big stages( her game bores me), so they did get her potential right. Hope you post this as I wrote it, not edited, like youâve done before. Great site, great articles, great comments!
Scoop Malinowski · September 6, 2022 at 12:03 pm
Whoa, you know tennis is slipping off the deep end when our old dear friend Harold expresses distaste for what is going on now. Were looking out for you at qualies Harold but myself and Richard were not able to find you, not even at your favorite perch in Armstrong now that old grandstand is gone. Good point about how Coco is always given big stadium courts and the Wimbledon champ Rybakina has to play in parking lots or small courts. Equality and “level playing field” are a sham. Harold, don’t know if you saw Phil Mushnick’s fine column on Serena, he was honest and truthful and covered her worst moments, it was a grand slam column in NY Post last week.
Scoop Malinowski · September 6, 2022 at 12:41 pm
NOTES: Comeback of the tournament goes to 14 year old Iva Jovic who was down 5-0 and 40-15 in the third set to Sorana Sierra and then won 11-9 in the tiebreaker. 75 26 76. Sierra was in the French Open girl final earlier this year. Iva is from California… Great to see Taylor Townsend doing damage in doubles with Caty Mcnally, TT has got herself in top shape finally and look at the results. If only she hadn’t wasted years of her career with a bad diet… The Colombians Farah and Cabal are still together, it has to be over a decade now. They are still alive in doubles…Garcia and Mladenovic broke up years ago but reunited and are winning again… The team of Koolhof and Neal Skupski are looking for their first GS together… Eleana Yu, who played main draw by winning girls 18s (lost to Riske), also lost 1R in girls singles draw…Moutet lost in qualies to Yibing Wu but got into the main draw and reached the fourth round, his best slam result of his career. Moutet pocketed $278,000 for winning three main draw matches vs Stan Wawrinka, Botic Van de zandschulp and Cachin, before losing to Ruud…You son’t see anymore of Nick Monroe, this was his last pro tournament. He lost in doubles with Keegan Smith and mixed with junior Robin Montgomery.
Harold · September 6, 2022 at 12:55 pm
I read Mushnick for the comedy. Rumor is, heâs a bitter old alcoholic living in NJ, hating on everything, the old man on the lawn, that canât, or wonât grow, fault with everything, from athletes, to the media covering athletes
Still battling for the guy who called a Venus match, and got fired for calling her playing styleâ Gorilla tennisâ thanks to a Ben Rothenberg article, or tweet. Credit for that. The Stephen A Smiths, and Mike Wilbonâs of the world get away w/ under their breath racism, all the time.
If he complimented someone,anyone, his readers would have a stroke
Scoop Malinowski · September 6, 2022 at 1:44 pm
Harold, Phil Mushnick is an excellent columnist and an important figure on the NY sports scene. He had a wonderful essay on Vin Scully recently, you must have missed it. Also a nice one on Pete Carril the college hoops coach. His critical take on Muhammad Ali, who I adore, was also intriguing but quite critical. I even cut it out and saved the column and re-read on occasion. Mushnick is one of the best. And yes he is still on a crusade to get Doug Adler back into the TV business, he was unjustly fired for calling Venus tennis style “guerilla tennis” which was of course the title of a Nike ad campaign in the Agassi Sampras 90s.
Douglas · September 6, 2022 at 5:32 pm
Glad MODERNA got their courtside ad in Ashe to remind us all how cowed the event is to state-sponsored medical malpractice. Then there’s their Bill J King TV ad
where she insists (in Obama speak no less) she’s “transformed” the world. Bill just had to ride Venus & Serena’s coatails. Lastly, after 2 years of mandated, record profits consider their motto “this changes everything” which could make Orwell blush. Novak wins one for courage, not conformity thru FEAR.
Scoop Malinowski · September 6, 2022 at 6:55 pm
Doug, Why can’t Bill King get equal prize money for LPGA and WNBA? And why is there no evidence or proof that Ashe changed his view to agree with equal prize money, not even in his book Days of Grace with Bill King wrote an into for, there is no mention of Bill King’s claims that Ashe ever agreed with equal prize money. Looks like King lied about Ashe.