Tennis world reacts to Nick Kyrgios announcement as Jannik Sinner makes statement
Nick Kyrgios has stunned the tennis world having announced he will make his first appearance at Roland Garros in eight years, while Jannik Sinner has made a brutal statement upon his comeback. Kyrgios has not played a match since Miami after making his return to tennis at the Australian Open this year.
After dealing with a number of wrist and knee injuries that ruled him out for around 18 months, Kygrios made his comeback in Melbourne where he went down in the first round. Unfortunately, Kyrgios has only played four singles matches in 2025 having won his only game in Miami earlier this year.
But after an extended break, Kyrgios announced he will take part in the Stuttgart tournament next week using a protected ranking in a bid to find match fitness before playing doubles at Roland Garros. Clay has never been Kygrios' favourite surface and in the past he has opted to skip a number of the major events to save his body for the grass court season.
Although Kyrgios' return on clay in 2025 could be a move to build up his match fitness as he makes a push at Wimbledon. Kyrgios made the 2022 Wimbledon final where he went down to Novak Djokovic.
Kyrgios admitted it was a plea from one of his friends, after Max Purcell's tennis ban, that changed his mind to play at Roland Garros in 2025. Kyrgios will pair up with Jordan Thompson in Paris.
"The French Open was never really on the cards," Kyrgios told The Canberra Times. "But after the stuff with Max Purcell, Jordan was looking for a partner and he asked me if I wanted to play. "We've played at the French Open before, so it'll be good to get out there and play with another fellow Aussie and have a bit of fun."
Confirmed by the entry list that Nick Kyrgios will play doubles at the French Open with Jordan Thompson.Will be his first appearance at Roland Garros since 2017. https://t.co/EXcYvSiTtI
— James Gray (@jamesgraysport) May 15, 2025
🎾 NICK KYRGIOS RETURNS TO ROLAND GARROSAfter an 8-year absence, the Aussie star is set to make his comeback at the French Open. Fans can expect fireworks on the clay once again!#NickKyrgios #RolandGarros #FrenchOpen #Tennis #KyrgiosComeback pic.twitter.com/LGmsZqkxNA
— João Neves (@jon_snow_pt) May 15, 2025
While Kyrgios is set to make his comeback to tennis, Sinner is already making waves in his first tournament back in his home event. Sinner returned from his three-month doping suspension out to prove a point at the Italian Open.
And the Italian favourite did just that against Madrid Open champion Casper Ruud having blitzed his rival 6-0 6-1 in a brutal statement. Ruud was riding high after winning in Madrid and carrying the momentum into the quarter-final clash.
Although Sinner was all business and wanted everyone to know he hasn't lost a step as the World No.1 dropped just one game against the two-time Roland Garros finalist. This marked Sinner's 25th straight win and 19th straight set in 2025.
All Ruud could do was smile at the changeover in the second set having praised the Italian for his elite level of play in Rome. "It's near as perfect that I witnessed, at least as a player, playing someone, so just got to give it to him," Ruud told reporters.
"Everything else that came out of his racket... feels like a hundred miles an hour plus, every single shot, on the forearm, from the backhand, and even on my shots that I feel at times are pretty heavy it comes back like just firing. He was just everywhere... it's just like playing a wall that you know shoots hundred miles an hour balls at you all the time."
Sinner d. Casper Ruud 6-0 6-1What on earth did we witnessJust his 4th match after 3 months away1 game dropped against a 2-time Roland Garros finalist✅1st Rome SF✅11th Masters SF✅25th straight win✅19th straight setUnplayable. Unbeatable. Untouchable.🇮🇹❤️ pic.twitter.com/0RSM5MsLYN
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) May 15, 2025
Sinner addmitted he was feeling good playing in front of his home fans and was working his way back to his best. "My goal this week is to understand where my level is, and it has raised day by day," he said after defeating Ruud.
"Everything can change in one day, and one performance doesn't tell you everything about my shape at the moment but I am very happy. I moved great on the court. Now let's see what is coming in the semi-finals." Sinner could be on track to play Carlos Alcaraz in the final in Rome.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
25 minutes ago
Gauff makes history at French Open
Winning her second Grand Slam singles title, 21-year-old Coco Gauff makes history at the French Open.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Coco Gauff responds to Aryna Sabalenka over ‘not fair' French Open final claim
Coco Gauff said Aryna Sabalenka's suggestion that she would have lost the French Open final to Iga Swiatek was not 'fair' after the American won her first Roland Garros title by beating the World No 1. In difficult, windy conditions, Gauff fought from a set down to defeat Sabalenka 6-7 6-2 6-4 and win her second grand slam title on the Paris clay. However, a disgruntled Sabalenka criticised her own performance, in which she made 70 unforced errors, and said 'it was the worst final I have ever played'. Advertisement Sabalenka had defeated Swiatek in the semi-finals, to end the Pole's 26-match winning run at Roland Garros, but could not get the job done as she lost to Gauff for her second grand slam final defeat in a row. 'That hurts,' Sabalenka said. 'Especially when you've been playing really great tennis during the whole week, when you've been playing against a lot of tough opponents, Olympic champion [Qinwen Zheng], Iga and then you go out, and you play really bad. 'Like I think Iga - if Iga would [have] won [against me] another day, I think she would go out today and she would get the win. It just hurts. Honestly hurts. I've been playing really well, and then in the last match, go out there and perform like I did, that's hurt.' To add to an extraordinary press conference, Sabalenka added: 'She was hitting the ball from the frame. Somehow magically the ball lands in the court. It felt like a joke, honestly, like somebody from above was there laughing, like, 'let's see if you can handle this'.' Advertisement Sabalenka also said: 'I think she won the match not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes.' Sabalenka after defeat to Coco Gauff in the final (AP) Gauff said that while she respected both Sabalenka and Swiatek, she could not agree with Sabalenka's assessment and said that she did a better job of dealing with the conditions. 'I mean, I don't agree with that,' Gauff replied as she appeared at her press conference next to the French Open trophy. 'I'm here sitting here [as the champion]. 'No shade to Iga or anything, but last time I played her I won in straight sets. I don't think that's a fair thing to say, because anything can really happen. Advertisement 'The way Aryna was playing the last few weeks, she was the favourite to win. So I think she was the best person that I could have played in the final. 'Her being No. 1 in the world was the best person to play, so I think I got the hardest matchup just if you go off stats alone.' Gauff kisses the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen, her second grand slam singles title (Getty Images) Gauff explained how she adjusted her game and handled the conditions to add to her 2023 US Open triumph, which also came against Sabalenka. 'It was super tough when I walked on the court and felt the wind because we warmed up with the roof closed,' Gauff said. 'I was, like, 'this is going to be a tough day'. 'I knew it was just going to be about willpower and mental. It really came down to the last few points, but overall I'm just really happy with the fight that I managed today. It wasn't pretty, but it got the job done, and that's all that matters.'
Boston Globe
2 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Jannik Sinner bids for first French Open title against defending champ Carlos Alcaraz
But Alcaraz has considerable factors in his favor. He has a 21-1 record on clay this year, winning titles on the dirt in Rome — beating Sinner in the final after the Italian returned from his doping ban — and Monte Carlo. Advertisement Alcaraz also has won the past four matches against Sinner, leads him 7-4 overall, and has won more majors — 4-3 — despite being one year younger at 22. He has also played in a French Open final before, which Sinner has not. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz owns a 21-1 record this season on clay courts heading into Sunday's French Open final. DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images Djokovic, who owns a men's-record 24 major titles and 100 in total, has faced and beaten the greatest players of his era. But he felt the relentless aggression of Sinner's forehand and booming power of his serve during his straight-set defeat on Friday — his fourth straight loss to Sinner. Djokovic has also lost in two Wimbledon finals to Alcaraz, who displays shot-making wizardry from anywhere on the court, and sometimes hits even harder than Sinner does. Advertisement So Djokovic knows just how difficult it is to cope against both players, saying 'these kind of guys, like Sinner and Alcaraz, they're constantly on you and basically increase the pressure as the match progresses.' Djokovic added: 'When the opportunities are presented, they're very rare, so it makes you a little more anxious.' Jannik Sinner (left) simply overpowered the legendary Novak Djokovic in the men's semifinals on Friday. Thibault Camus/Associated Press Sinner said the key to his victory against Djokovic, who pushed him hard in the third set on Friday, was staying calm and, somehow, managing to have enough focus amid the onslaught of Djokovic's attacks to still see the big picture. 'It's important to take your time. It's important to understand the moments of the match, which I think I made very good,' he said. 'The mental part was in a good spot.' That's where he maybe has the edge over Alcaraz. The jovial Spaniard, who loves to entertain the crowd, has looked the more nervous player at Roland-Garros so far. At times he struggled against eighth-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in their semifinal, which Alcaraz won in four sets after the Italian retired with a leg injury. But he's 'not worried' about dropping a few sets. 'Because I know that I have time and I'm strong mentally enough to come back,' Alcaraz said. Alcaraz proved that in last year's French Open final, when he came back from 2-1 down in sets to beat Alexander Zverev, another big server like Sinner. The hallmarks of his comeback in that match were down-the-line, forehand winners mixed with remarkable drop shots launched from anywhere. Carlos Alcaraz loves to entertain with his shot-making ability, but he also badly wants to win his fifth Grand Slam title on Sunday. Thibault Camus/Associated Press Sinner is serving better than Alcaraz, however, and also showed his deft touch with a majestic flick-of-the-wrist drop shot that mesmerized even Djokovic. 'It's going to be a really great Sunday,' Alcaraz said. 'For the fans of tennis.' Advertisement The result will see either Alcaraz pulling away to a 5-3 lead in major titles, or Sinner equalizing on 4-4. A new tennis rivalry to match the glorious three-way battle for supremacy between Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal? 'At the moment, that's kind of hard, because they need to play against each for at least 10-plus years nonstop in order to be part of the same discussion,' the 38-year-old Djokovic said Friday, laughing. 'But they're definitely great for tennis, both of them. I think their rivalry is something that our sport needs, no doubt. I'm sure that we're going to see them lifting the big trophies quite often.'
