Nick Kyrgios will make his long-awaited return to Roland-Garros, with the enigmatic star confirming he will include the Paris tournament in his schedule next year – but only at his partner Costeen Hatzi’s request.
Kyrgios has not contested the clay-court major since 2017 and has never progressed beyond the third round in his previous five appearances.
He will, however, enter in 2023, admitting that his comeback had more to do with Hatzi’s keen interest to spend time in France than playing tennis.
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“My girlfriend wants to know Paris, so I’m going to play at Roland-Garros 2023,” he said.
“It will be good for me to earn some more money, although I would have preferred to stay at home.”
In pursuit of a maiden grand slam title next season following his deep runs at Wimbledon and the US Open this year, Kyrgios insisted he has the makings to excel at the tournament.
“I know I can do great results on clay,” he said.
“I beat Roger [Federer], [Stan] Wawrinka, I played a final in Estoril… My girl wants to get to know the city so I will have to go this year.”
In April, the 27-year-old won his first match on clay since 2019 when he defeated American Mackenzie McDonald in his opening match at the ATP 250 tournament in Houston.
Kyrgios has never been a huge fan of clay-court events, repeatedly stating the red dirt is not his preferred playing surface.
In 2021, he branded the second major the “worst grand slam” and called for it to be removed from the calendar.
Speaking at the Diriyah Tennis Cup in Saudi Arabia, he claimed the court surface featured too much on the ATP calendar.
“I’ve said it many times and I’m saying it again now,” he said.
“There are too many clay-court tournaments on the calendar. I see guys in the top 100 that I don’t even know, I wouldn’t recognise them if I crossed them on the street, and they’re there only because of the clay tournaments.
“I think it’s crazy.”
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