Nick Kyrgios’s comeback has suffered another major blow, with the Australian retiring from his first-round ATP Tour match at Indian Wells.
The controversial Canberran trailed Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp 7-6 (9/7), 3-0 in their match at the BNP Paribas Open on Thursday night when he pulled out due to a right wrist injury.
Kyrgios, who held a set point in the first set tiebreaker, spoke with the trainer before becoming visibly upset knowing his night was over.
The 29-year-old wiped away tears before walking over to van de Zandschulp and conceding the match.
“I wasn’t too confident that I was going to be able to play today,” Kyrgios said.
“Two days ago in practice, I had to stop my practice because I felt pain in my wrist, but I felt like it was OK to take to the court.”
If Kyrgios had won, he would have played the legendary Novak Djokovic in the second round.
The withdrawal follows Kyrgios’s first-round exit at January’s Australian Open, after which he said he had likely played his last singles match at Melbourne Park.
It was his first appearance at a major since making the 2022 US Open quarterfinals, before then requiring wrist and knee surgeries.
AAP
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