Australian Nick Kyrgios says the Laver Cup was his last event this year and he’s unsure how long he will continue to play professional tennis.
Playing for Team World at the men's team event, the mercurial Kyrgios lost his singles match in straight sets to world No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas and also tasted defeat in doubles during the second day of competition at Boston.
"Definitely, this is my last event of the year," says Kyrgios, who was not in the Team World line-up on the final day of the event.
"I need to go back home. I have been travelling for four-and-a-half months now.
“My mum is not doing too well with her health. I'd like to go back and see her.
"Obviously, I'll get my body right and I'll start my pre-season, spend time with my family for the Australian Open [in January] and go from there. I will reassess."
Kyrgios, 26, who reached a career-high ranking of 13 in 2016, has slipped down the ladder, now ranked 95th in the world, after playing very few tournaments in the last two years during the COVID-19 pandemic.
His talent is undoubted - he is among the few players in the world to beat the ‘Big Three’ of Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic - and Kyrgios remains a fan favourite with his shotmaking wizardry.
"I feel like I'm not one of those players now that's going to go hunting for points or hunting for accolades, or anything like that," he says. "I feel like I have nothing left to prove to myself.
“I'm incredibly proud of what I have achieved. Where I go from here, everything's a bonus.
“I'm playing Laver Cup again and I'm not going to lie, I think this is my last year I will probably play Laver Cup.
"As long as I'm on the court, I will try and give my best, but I'm not going to lie and say that I'm going to plan to play 4-5 more years on tour. That's just not me."
Reuters
