Home International News I played a Slam final against one of the greatest of all time :Nick Kyrgios

I played a Slam final against one of the greatest of all time :Nick Kyrgios

by Kolkata Today

Australian Nick Kyrgios, 27, won the first set before losing to Serbia’s top seed Novak Djokovic in Sunday’s men’s final.

Kyrgios, ranked 40th in the world, has only played a limited number of tournaments since the coronavirus pandemic started in 2020.

On court after losing to Novak Djokovic, he told that reaching his first Wimbledon final had not whetted his appetite for more. Far from it. He was utterly exhausted after his two weeks in Wimbledon and he just wanted to go on holiday.

While briefing at press conference ,he told the world’s media that had he beaten Djokovic and won his first Grand Slam title, it might have killed his motivation stone dead.
And as he talked, he explained that he actually felt better now – as the defeated finalist – than he had since he got here.

“It’s taken me 10 years, almost 10 years in my career to finally get to the point of playing for a Grand Slam and coming up short,” Kyrgios said.
“I feel like if I had won that Grand Slam, I think I would have lacked a bit of motivation, to be honest. Coming back for other tournaments, like 250s and stuff, I would have really struggled. I kind of would have achieved the greatest pinnacle of what you can achieve in tennis.
But my level is right there. I feel like you look at what Novak has done to some other opponents, and it’s not a good feeling. But I’m right there. I’m not behind the eight ball at all. I played a Slam final against one of the greatest of all time, and I was right there.
Confidence obviously. It was a hell of an occasion. People were probably expecting me to have something happen today. But I came out in the first set and I looked like I was the one who had played in a lot of finals. I thought I dealt with the pressure pretty well”,Kyrgios added.

The sheer work needed to win one of these trophies is, Kyrgios thinks, beyond most people’s comprehension. He has had a taste of it here and he has nothing but respect for the Big Three and what they have achieved.
“It takes a hell of an athlete, mentally and physically, to win one of these things,” Kyrgios said. “I think eight people have won this title since I’ve been born. It shows, physically, one thing, obviously it shows. Mentally it’s another beast. To come back here for two weeks in a row. None of the people in this room understand it.”
“I commend Federer, Djokovic, and Nadal. These guys, what they deal with must be insane. And that is, for me, the sign of a champion. That’s what they deal with, as well, and then being able to perform, it’s incredible.”

Now that it is all over, Kyrgios feels great. The pressure from outside and from within is gone; the chitter-chatter on social media in the build up to the final is done and he can feel proud of what he has achieved these past two weeks and what he could do in the future.

“I felt like I belonged. I lost this match, but I feel like there’s just weight off my shoulders,” he said. “I feel like there’s so much weight on my shoulders all the time when I step out on the tennis court, now it’s just released and I feel amazing. This is the best I’ve felt the two weeks.
I was obviously super excited to be here and I had some high hopes, but I’ve never felt, to be honest, good. I just felt so much pressure. There’s so much anxiety, pressure to do things or achieve things. If I don’t do well, like it’s just so much. So I feel unbelievable. Like I’m two beers deep”,Kyrgios added.

Topics

Wimbledon Nick Kyrgios Tennis Sports Kolkata

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