MELBOURNE, Australia — On this island, once the center of men's tennis, the land of Laver and Rosewall, Emerson and Newcombe and other tennis gods, a strangest dynamic is unfolding.
People all over the world are obsessed with Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. Here, it's all about their own tennis yin and yang.
One is a top 10 athlete who does everything he can to avoid controversy while giving his all to the sport. The other is an unranked unicorn, best suited for the middle ring of a three-ring circus. Some have worked their way to the elite edge of the sport. Another has more natural tennis talent flowing through his veins than anyone else on the planet, according to nearly every other player and past celebrities, including Goran Ivanisevic and Andy Roddick.
The 2025 Australian Open will be filled with the latest performances from both players.
World number eight Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios, who has returned from a two-year battle with knee and wrist injuries, will headline his country at Melbourne Park. Kyrgios will host the night session at John Cain Arena on Monday, before De Minaur headlines Australian Tennis Hall of Fame Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday night.
They are both celebrities now. They couldn't be more similar.
Kyrgios returned to the center of the tennis world in a way only he could, carrying that confidence like a broadsword and swinging it at everyone he met, whether they wanted to duel or not. Because he was out of action for a long time due to injury, he is not included in the rankings.
However, although he ranks last among his compatriots when it comes to numbers, there is no doubt who will fill the stadium. He has spent much of the past few months trolling world number one Sinner over his doping scandal, peppering social media with vile claims of conspiracy and filling comment sections with needle emojis. That included fellow Australian Lleyton Hewitt's son Cruz posting a photo of him and Sinner that seemed to represent the best moment of his tennis career. It will be done.
Sinners are not very happy about this, even indirectly. When Kyrgios' jab came up at Friday's press conference, he sour-mouthed: “I don't think I need to answer this.”
Despite his extraordinary talent, Kyrgios has always been ambiguous about his life as a professional tennis player. He was always willing to turn it into a spectacle.
He has sought more nuance in other areas of his life as well. In early 2023, Kyrgios pleaded guilty to assaulting his then-girlfriend Chiara Passari in 2021, but was not found guilty. He has been open about experiencing depression and said his mental health affects his behavior.
“We watch sports because we want character,” Kyrgios said on Friday. “Every time I step on the court, I don't know if I'm going to be super controversial, in a good way or in a bad way. Throughout my career, it hasn't always been a good thing, but it brings a lot of excitement to the game. I think that's important.
“There are so many great players on tour right now. I don't think there's anyone with such contrasting personalities.”
How big of a star is Kyrgios around here? He lost in straight sets to Britain's Jacob Fearnley (along with Scotsman Andy Murray) in the first round of singles on Monday night. Most of the games were tentative as he has been dealing with injuries, but it may have been a warm-up for him as he returns from 18 months out.
He will want to fill the stadium for the doubles he plays with his good friend Thanasi Kokkinakis. The duo, known as “Special Ks,” won the title here in 2022. The match, played to a raucous, beer-drunk crowd, made the doubles tournament a national event.
In the post-match press conference after the loss to Fernley, Kyrgios admitted even more forcefully: “I can't imagine playing singles here again.”
Nick Kyrgios dazzles the crowd at Melbourne Park (Graham Denholm/Getty Images)
The contrast with de Minaur could not be more stark. Kyrgios stands 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm) tall and is a master of trick shots and creativity with one of the best serves in the world. De Minaur is about half a foot shorter, and considering his lighter weight, you could argue that he's smaller than that.
Always the envy of his unparalleled speed, de Minaur spent the first few years after the pandemic lurking inside the world's top 20. In 2023, he carries the hopes of his homeland on his shoulders as he faces Novak Djokovic here in the fourth round. Djokovic said he used the moment to: He is seeking revenge on Australia, which deported him the previous year for refusing to be vaccinated against the coronavirus. He obliterated his favorite tennis son 6-2, 6-1, 6-2.
Then, last May, De Minaur's career took an upward trajectory.
Although he is half-Spanish and spent much of his childhood there, he has never participated in many clay court tennis events. He can run like a deer. He can change direction like a scrambling puppy. He has a huge engine. He is ideally suited to the physical and intense game required on the surface, and has never relied for success on big serves that might be neutralized on clay.
In a miasma of rain and clouds, he defeated clay-hating Daniil Medvedev to reach the quarterfinals of the 2024 French Open, shouting to his friends and coaches: I love it here. It's not enough. ”
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He got a lot of “I said sos” from coaches. He then reached the quarterfinals of both Wimbledon and the US Open, but a cruel stroke of bad luck forced him to lose the former, when he was injured during his fourth-round victory. With his bulky hips and everything else, he fought his way through to the finals at the end of the year and was named to the top eight elite companies.
He was already a big star in Australia. Outside his home country, he is best known as the star boyfriend of his partner, British WTA top 30 player Katie Boulter, after winning the ATP event in Acapulco, Mexico, last March. He was the guy who took the next flight out of Acapulco, Mexico, to see him play. The next night was the final in San Diego, California. This initiative set the standard for all boyfriends, sports, and beyond, extending from live sports to morning television shows. He proposed to Boulter during the offseason. she said so.
Walking down the hallway beneath Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros during the French Open last May, he said he wanted to evolve from a grinder to a player with enough momentum to occasionally hit the ball into the court. Maybe you can easily score points with your serve. He was too easy to push down.
“You're going to be exposed and you're going to get a little bit of bullying,” he said.
Alex de Minaur has risen to the top eight in the world in the past 12 months (Sean M. Huffey/Getty Images)
When de Minaur arrived on the ATP Tour six years ago, he weighed just over 150 pounds (68 kg) and was soaking wet. After training in the gym, his weight has increased to around 167 pounds, but over the past year his weight and strength have reached a tipping point. In the end, he was able to run back the best players in the world with a combination of newly acquired power and increased rotation on his groundstrokes.
“It was important to be stronger than usual and put a little bit of weight on myself,” he said. “The ball weighed a little more, and in the end that's what I needed to compete against the top players in the world.”
He failed to win a match in the finals at the end of the year. Still, he believed he had arrived.
De Minaur said, “I've overcome a big hurdle in my career. Now it's important to take advantage of my position.''
Kyrgios disagrees. At Friday's press conference, he recalled the first time he faced De Minaur. De Minaur was still a teenager at the time and was accompanying him to Davis Cup matches as a training partner. Kyrgios decided to play ball with them late one day. He brought a beer to the courtroom, thinking it wouldn't be too serious.
“I thought, 'I'm going to go out there and teach this little kid a lesson.' (But) it was a really close set. I was in my prime. He was only 17.” he said. “You look at how well he’s worked on being our No. 1 player over the last three or four years, he’s grown.
” I've been there. I didn't always handle it in the best way.”
No, it wasn't. Could he do it now? Could he be the same player who reached the Wimbledon final again?
Kyrgios will never approach a match humbly. He said his sport requires a certain amount of paranoia.
“If you play your style, your unpredictable tennis, you have a chance against everyone. That's the mindset you need to have,” he said Friday. “If I went out on court for the first time to play against Nadal, Djokovic and Federer and was realistic, I probably wouldn't have won. For a kid from Canberra to come out there and beat them… it's not realistic. You have to think, “I'm the best tennis player in the world.'' Is it realistic? Probably not. But that's what I think when I go outside. ”
This is perhaps the only similarity between the two, even if de Minaur's expression of emotion is somewhat different. He said he reached a better version of himself each time he passed the Australian Open. he learned a lot. Winning gave me confidence.
“If it were strictly based on rankings, it would be a very boring sport. But at this stage anything can happen,” he said. “We have seen opportunities come and many doors open.
“There's always a chance. Every time you go into a tournament, you have to always think you have a chance.”
(Top photo: Getty Images, Design: Will Tullos)
