Thanasi Kokkinakis wants to resurrect his grand slam-winning doubles combination with Nick Kyrgios at the Australian Open but remains in the dark over whether his close friend will be fit.
The in-form Kokkinakis says the pair will “definitely” compete together in the men’s doubles draw if Kyrgios is available, but the mercurial star will need to overcome a persistent knee issue that has limited him to a single match in 2023.
Knee surgery ruled the former world No.13 out of the Australian Open in January before a wrist injury stopped him returning to Wimbledon, where he had pushed Novak Djokovic to four sets in the 2022 final.
Kyrgios has since struggled to rehabilitate his knee and has spoken openly about a lack of motivation to play on after a physically and mentally taxing year.
Kokkinakis said he was still keen to revive their doubles combination after the wildcard pair stormed to the 2022 Australian Open title as the first all-Australian pair to win since Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde in 1997.
“If he’s healthy and we’re both healthy, we’re definitely in,” Kokkinakis told SEN SportsDay.
“He obviously had a tough year this year with some injuries. I know he’s hard rehabbing what he’s got going on.
“I’m hoping we can see him in the summer. If he’s healthy … we’ll definitely play.”
Kokkinakis said he was racing the clock to be fit for the Davis Cup finals in Spain later this month after hurting his ankle last week, but the 27-year-old has largely enjoyed a smooth run this year after a wretched battle with injuries early in his career.
The big-serving right-hander reached a career-high ranking of 65 this year and has his sights set on breaking into the top 50 in 2024.
He said the heavy 11-month travel schedule took a toll and he was unlikely to follow the trend of playing on into his late 30s, but was not setting a limit on what he could achieve in the next few years.
“Personally, to be honest I think I’m going to struggle to be that kind of guy (to play into his 30s),” Kokkinakis said.
“The travelling for me is the hardest part – I love my life back home, I love being in Australia, I feel very comfortable here … being from Europe, it’s a lot easier (to play for longer).
“I’ll try to squeeze a few more years out of me and see what I can do … I don’t want to regret not playing more tournaments and putting more years (in) when I’m finally done.”
Australian cult hero John Millman announced on Thursday that he would retire following the Open in January, declaring his body had “broken down”.
The 34-year-old, who twice reached the third round at Melbourne Park and Wimbledon, only contested 10 tour matches this year as he struggled to find fitness.
“I can still play at a high level I feel but not day in, day out. The body’s not letting me. All those years of being physical on court has caught up with me,” he told Nine.
