Nick Kyrgios feels break came at right time, admitting ‘I had no happy feelings’ on tennis court

ATP Tour

Shahida Jacobs
November 16, 2020

For most people the 2020 tennis hiatus had a negative impact, but Nick Kyrgios believes the “time has been perfect” as it allowed him to “get a complete reset”.

The sport went on a five-month hiatus from March to August due to the coronavirus and, while most top players returned to action after the break, Kyrgios opted to take the remainder of the season off.

However, he has been pretty active during the pause as he has done a lot of work for his charity while he has also enjoyed spending time with his family and friends back in his native Brisbane.

The Australian, who recently opened up again about his struggles with depression, admits that he had fallen out of love with tennis before tennis was suspended.

Nick Kyrgios opens up about depression which left him in a ‘lonely, dark place’

“I was thinking maybe it was time for me to just take a year off,” he told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“I couldn’t look at a tennis court. I had no happy feelings. I had no desire to be out there. I had no motivation. I had no need for growth out there.

“I was just going through the motions. It wasn’t making me happy. If anything, it was decreasing my energy. It was a negative impact on my life.”

He added: “This time has been perfect. I’ve had it off where I can completely reset and dabble in a couple of areas where my passion was, be back in my community, be back in my home, and just get a complete reset. That’s what I was thinking about doing.”

At the age 25, Kyrgios should still have plenty of years left on the tennis circuit, but he had previously admitted that he could retire by 27.

Although he doesn’t rule out quitting in two years’ time, for now it looks like he is happy to continue for a few more years.

“I feel I still have plenty more in the tank,” he said.

“I could play past that if I wanted to. We’ll see. Someone could call it tomorrow, you know what I mean? Something can happen where you don’t want to play any more. I wouldn’t say I’m putting a number on it at the moment.”

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Nick Kyrgios