Nick Kyrgios has offered an explanation to his supporters after falling at the first hurdle in Stuttgart on Tuesday. The Aussie was hoping to hit the ground running in his first singles match of 2023 ahead of Wimbledon, but his performance suggested that he may struggle to make an impact at SW19 as underdog Wu Yibing prevailed in straight sets.
Before Tuesday’s clash with Wu, Kyrgios had been consigned to the sidelines for a number of months after undergoing knee surgery. His last competitive singles match was eight months ago at the Japan Open.
That gave rust plenty of time to set in, and Kyrgios was far from his normal self at the Stuttgart Open as Wu powered to a 7-5 6-3 victory in his first ATP match on grass. Kyrgios drew criticism from some of those watching for what they perceived to be a lack of effort.
But others believed he returned to the court too soon after his injury troubles. The player himself took to social media after the match to address his supporters directly.
“Be patient with me my fans please,” he wrote on Twitter. “It’s a process to get back to where I was. I know it’s hard for you to see me perform like today, but I need more time and hopefully can get back to where I was.”
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Unfortunately for Kyrgios, time is a luxury he does not have much of as the Wimbledon main draw gets underway in less than a month. The 28-year-old was one of the key figures at last year’s tournament as he battled all the way to the final.
“The last time I played on grass was juniors back in 2017, so six years,” said Wu once his win over Kyrgios was settled. “I was really happy to play Nick in the first round. He’s one of the best players on grass and he served well.
“He aced me [so many] times. The key for me was to stay cool, stay patient in the game and find a way. I’m happy [with that result].”