Nick Kyrgios insists no one can understand how hard he struggles at every Australian Open – as he posts a cryptic video about people wanting to see their heroes fail
- The Aussie star addressed the high expectations ahead of the grand slam in Melbourne
- Kyrgios comes into the tournament after excelling at Wimbledon and the US Open
- He posted a Spider-Man video referencing tall poppy syndrome on Friday
Nick Kyrgios opened up about the intense expectations he will face at this year’s Australian Open before posting a cryptic video on social media that referred to people’s desire to see big names fall.
The 27-year-old is trying to overcome an ankle injury before the grand slam starts on January 16 and will enter this year’s event with fans hoping for him to bounce back after his excellent 2022 season, if where he reached the men’s singles finals at Wimbledon and the quarter finals of the US Open.
Kyrgios indicated that those two deep runs taught him some lessons that will be useful when he takes to the court at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena.
‘People will never understand the pressure I feel at this time of year. It’s always difficult to navigate,’ he told News Corp.
Kyrgios entered last year’s Australian Open underdone and lost in the first round (pictured). He believes there is a lot of pressure on him to do better in this year’s grand slam
Kyrgios credited girlfriend Costeen Hatzi (pictured together) with helping him get his game back in 2022 as he had stellar runs at Wimbledon and the US Open
‘I worked on a few things last year during Wimbledon and the US Open and I will try to replicate the same things here in Australia.’
There was speculation earlier this week that her ankle could rule her out of the Australian Open after the star pulled out of the United Cup tournament and the Adelaide International – prompting her manager Daniel Horsfall to slam critics who thought the damage might not be real.
Kyrgios put any concerns about his fitness to bed, insisting his ankle is ‘definitely feeling better’ and revealing he has been training and doing drills.
On Friday night he posted a video on his Instagram account showing a scene from the 2002 Spider-Man film starring Tobey Maguire and Willem Dafoe.
In it, Dafoe’s villainous Green Goblin character confronts Spider-Man during a fight and tells him, ‘Choose the way of the hero, and they find you amusing for a while, the people of this city .
‘But the one thing they love more than a hero is to see a hero fail, fall.’
The video appears to be a reference to tall poppy syndrome, which Kyrgios mentioned as recently as last month.
The 27-year-old posted a clip from the 2022 Spider-Man film on his Instagram on Friday (pictured) in what appeared to be a reference to Australia’s tall poppy syndrome
Kyrgios last played in Dubai last month (pictured) before an ankle injury sidelined him in warm-up tournaments for the Australian Open
On December 29, his manager Horsfall tweeted, ‘Why does tall poppy syndrome exist… especially in Australia against other fellow Australians… blows my mind.’
Kyrgios responded by tweeting, ‘My brudda speaking facts.’
Last month he also criticized what he sees as the public’s relentless desire to keep him in the headlines.
‘I learned that people can never have enough,’ he told Eurosport.
‘It’s always hard to be me. When I win a contest or win something of value, they always want more.
‘It’s never like, OK, it’s time to rest. It’s like, right, do it again.’
Kyrgios will learn his first opponent in Rod Laver when the Australian Open draw takes place on January 12.
