Nick Kyrgios defines Novak Djokovic’s mental and physical toughness as standard for survival in “brutal sport” of tennis

Nick Kyrgios highlighted the hardships of athletes competing on the ATP and WTA circuits. He defined Novak Djokovic's mental and physical toughness as the standard for survival in the "brutal sport".

Kyrgios hasn't played a professional match since June 2023. At the Grand Slam tournaments, he hasn't made an appearance after the 2022 US Open, where he lost to Karen Khachanov in the quarterfinals.

The Aussie has taken up commentating and hosting in the meantime. He recently sat down with Louis Theroux for a conversation on his life on and off the court. In the chat, he touched upon the harsh sacrifices a tennis player has to make in order to travel on the Tour every week, bearing the expenses for everyone involved with him.

"Tennis is a sport where you pay for everything, you subsidize for your coaches, travel, your parents, your physios, whereas most sports, it’s all subsidized by the governing body. Tennis is a tough one. It’s the hardest sport in the world in my opinion," Kyrgios said at The Louis Theroux Tennis Podcast (at 21:51).

The 2022 Wimbledon runner-up, mentioning Djokovic, added that a tennis player is required to possess great grit to bear the pressure of the schedule.

"Mentally, you have to be unbelievably tough, because you’re always traveling, you never settle, you never have any routine. Physically, you have to be an animal, to be someone like Novak Djokovic animal. These guys are some of the most skilful athletes in the world. It’s a brutal sport, it really is," Nick Kyrgios said.

---

Nick Kyrgios: "If you’re European or American, you lose in a tournament early, you can get one flight home but Australia, it’s impossible to do that"

Nick Kyrgios (Getty)

In the same episode of The Louis Theroux Tennis Podcast, Nick Kyrgios also narrated his struggles while having to fly to Australia from the other side of the globe to get home during the season.

"If you play full schedule, someone from Australia, I’m on the road for eight to nine months a year. Every week different hotel and you don’t know what time you’re gonna play, indefinitely you’re adapting to different time zones," he said.

He noted that it's slightly better for players residing in Europe or Americas:

"For me, from Australia like, you just so away from your family and friends and from a comfortable environment for like more than seven months. If you’re European or you’re American, you kind of lose in a tournament early, you can get one flight home but Australia, it’s impossible to do that. And it’s very lonely."

Nick Kyrgios, 29, has remained absent from the ATP Tour for close to 18 months now but is expected to compete at the Australian Open in January 2025.