Special Ks out to thrill the Italian crowds in Turin’s ATP Tour Finals
Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios, the Special Ks, will ensure that more eyes will be on the AT Tour Doubles Finals than ever before.
The Aussie pairing took home their first Grand Slam at their home event earlier this year and have paired consistently despite Kyrgios finding form in the singles.
Kyrgios and Kokkinakis say that the bond they share makes being out on the court together fun.
It does seem that Kokkinakis usually has a calming effect on Kyrgios, but he insists both men bring different strengths to the team.
“I think we balance out each other well,” Kokkinakis said.
“When the other one is down, we lift each other up. We both are captains at times whenever we need it.
“I think we bring our singles strengths onto the doubles court,” Kokkinakis added.
“If we try and be doubles players instead of playing our [natural] game, it’s not going to come out too good for us. We’ll just play aggressive, serve big, and see what happens. I think we are going to continue to play singles on a doubles court.”
Together they are known as the Special Ks and they are fan favourites in most venues.
It is likely that the Australians will pick up a few more fans before their time in Turin is done.
“It should be fun, it’s a new experience for us both,” Kokkinakis said.
“It’s a massive event. We’d love to have the Italian fans going nuts.
“Wherever we’ve played this year the crowds have been packed with unbelievable energy. It’s pretty fun for us. Hopefully it can be a continuing thing going forward.”
Kokkinakis says that the team definitely aren’t the hardest working team on the doubles circuit.
He concedes that the pair don’t do any real doubles training at all.
“We definitely don’t practise doubles at all,” he said.
“We don’t do any doubles drills or anything like that. Maybe it can be an advantage, maybe a disadvantage at times because we only do our own thing.”
The Special Ks have played just seven tournaments together this season, and boast a 19-5 match record in 2022.
They completed the regular season at eighth in the ATP Doubles Teams Rankings, however the pair have their sights set on being crowned champion at the coveted ATP Finals in Turin next week.
“It’s [going to be] a pretty awesome experience,” Kokkinakis said.
“I don’t think it’s something we expected coming into the year. To do it with such a good mate, there’s going to be good energy out there.”
READ MORE: Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal separated by ATP Finals Group stage draw
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