The relationship between Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios has been a rollercoaster over the years, but the recent upwards trend is reaching heights never once thought possible.
In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, Kyrgios didn’t hold back when calling out his fellow tennis stars, Djokovic included.
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But as the old saying goes, time heals all wounds and now the two are as thick as thieves with the relationship potentially set for the unthinkable.
The Serbian world number one has made a cheeky offer to the mercurial Aussie star to try and take his game to epic heights.
Kyrgios put the tennis world on notice in 2022 when he played his greatest stretch of tennis, culminating in reaching the final of the Wimbledon Grand Slam.
Unfortunately the Canberra native ran into a rampant Djokovic who dispatched him in four sets to claim his 21st Grand Slam victory.
But after a recent win during the Banja Luka Open, the 35-year-old superstar offered up a tempting offer for Kyrgios.
“I would love to coach Nick Kyrgios.
“He would win five Slams with me, but it would not come cheap.”
“Hahahah… instead let’s go have a nice dinner and some drinks,” Kyrgios wrote in response to the suggestion.
The partnership would wreak pure havoc on the tennis landscape, but could also reap incredible rewards.
With Djokovic’s mental prowess guiding the way with Kyrgios’ unmatched arsenal of skill and talent, the Aussie could ascend to the tennis pinnacle.
Kyrgios has endured a tough time in 2023 having been hampered by injuries which have cruelled his campaign.
He went under the knife after pulling out from Melbourne Park and the United Cup, and at the time, his manager said he was targeting the start of the American hard court season in Indian Wells.
Unfortunately the Aussie was forced to withdraw from Indian Wells as well as the Miami Open.
His new timeline put him on track to return to action at Roland Garros, but the combination of the physical brutality of clay, particularly on the knees that have given Kyrgios so much trouble over the course of his career, as well as the fact that reigning Wimbledon finalist has historically preferred grass, may mean that he skips the clay season entirely.
Kyrgios and his physio revealed in January that the star had a cyst on his meniscus that required invasive arthroscopic surgery, on top of a tear in his left knee.
He said the Australian Open was one of the “most important tournaments” of his career and the decision to withdraw wasn’t easy.
“I’m obviously extremely disappointed,” he said before conceding it was simply bad timing.
Physiotherapist Will Maher told the media Kyrgios had tried everything to be able to compete in Melbourne.
He said the tennis star even attempted to drain the cyst just a week out from playing with hope it would relieve some pressure.
“We used the charity event against Novak as a gauge to see if he could compete at that highest level. He didn’t pull up great and he still tried to give himself every chance in the following days to have subsequent training,” Mr Maher said.
“But it was clear that with each passing session he was getting sorer and sorer.”
The French Open gets underway on May 28 with the Grand Slam set to finish on June 11.
