The 2024 Australian Open is underway and is being broadcast by ESPN in the United States. On Day 1 though, as reported by The Sun, the Australian Open aired around the same time as the NFL playoffs game – Miami Dolphins vs Kansas City Chiefs on NBC. Most American sports lovers would have gone for the latter, but it might prove to be a blessing in disguise for ESPN as it gave Nick Kyrgios an opportunity to be relaxed on his commentary debut for the network.
This edition of the Australian Open is exciting for homeboy Nick Kyrgios, but not as a competitor. Kyrgios will be commentating on air during the matches, something he seems pretty chuffed about. Although he hasn’t spoken much about it, Kyrgios has shared several well-wishers’ positive comments on his social media. He also seems to have buried the hatchet with German legend Boris Becker and join him in the broadcasting team for Eurosport.
“Watching the Aussie Open listening to Nick Kyrgios commentary of the men’s matches! He’s killing it! Wonderful intelligent insight… such a breath of fresh air! You have a career after you retire! You Rock!”, wrote a fan whose post Kyrgios shared on Instagram stories.
Nick Kyrgios could be the biggest name in tennis currently that ESPN has for its US broadcast. And on his first day, a separate highlights reel on his commentary could have been made. He was on air when Andrey Rublev nearly lost in the first round to World No. 78 Thiago Seyboth Wild in a five-setter and when Novak Djokovic was challenged by 18-year-old Dino Prizmic.
Kyrgios urged Rublev to learn from Djokovic in terms of how to play the big matches in Grand Slams differently. Rublev has underperformed in Grand Slams according to many, as his talent has not justified his results so far. The Russian has failed to go past the quarterfinals of any majors despite being in the top 10 of the ATP rankings consistently.
Having fun on air made Kyrgios look his authentic self and that was evident in the Djokovic match as he reacted to some of his best points as well as spoke extensively about how difficult it is to beat the 1o-time champion in Melbourne.
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A pundit on Eurosport now, commentary isn’t the only thing Kyrgios made his debut with in recent times. Kyrgios has also started his podcast Good Trouble With Nick Kyrgios, which is in partnership with Naomi Osaka’s media company, Hana Kuma. The list of guests has prominent names, featuring motivational speaker Jay Shetty, Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner and Thanasi Kokkinakis among others.
With his broadcasting career off to a great start and starting a full-fledged podcast with friends and colleagues, Kyrgios aka ‘The Bad Boy of Tennis’, seems like he is in a great headspace right now after a slew of injuries kept him out of the circuit. He has also expressed disliking tennis in a previous instance. Could this be the life and career of the 28-year-old from here on?
Nick Kyrgios recently stirred another controversy by lashing out at Pat Cash
Pat Cash is an Australian veteran tennis star, whose 1987 Wimbledon win over the legendary Ivan Lendl is fresh on fans’ minds. The 58-year-old recently commented something along the lines of Australian fans’ behavior in stands. He fears that foreign tennis players might stop coming to Australia if the fans don’t respect them enough. Cash’s comments, although tame, still angered Kyrgios.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Kyrgios was quoted as saying in an interview –
“Absolutely stupid comment by another old head that has no idea how marketing or how things work in today’s day and age… With everything I do on and off the court, entertainment value, putting eyes on this. It just makes everyone else more money in the sport. And if Pat Cash can’t see that (then Cash is) stubborn, old, stuck in his ways.”
Kyrgios went after Cash and was unmerciful in painting him with colorful words. It’s a dicey situation, since Cash may not be correct in his assessment, but he did present his opinion politely. Whereas, the Bad Boy of tennis went after him and called him by name, someone who was 30 years older than him. With finally garnering praise from fans for his wonderful commentary, it may not have been wise for him to do that. But then again, Kyrgios has always been like that.
