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BBC News
19-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
'I thought I'd never play again' - Kyrgios on first win in two years
Nick Kyrgios said he feared he would never play tennis again after claiming his first ATP Tour victory since 2022 on Australian fought back from a set down to beat Mackenzie McDonald 3-6 6-3 6-4 at the Miami has struggled with injuries in the past two years and retired from the first round at Indian Wells earlier this month because of an issue with his right wrist, on which he had surgery in September to that, the 29-year-old also struggled with knee and foot injuries over an 18-month period, before making his return at the start of the year at the Australian Open."To come off and get a win and feel like I belong again was special," he said. "I never thought I would play tennis again to be brutally honest with you."I was having conversations with my camp and my team... and I said: 'I don't know how long I can keep doing this for.'"Kyrgios struggled from the start and looked frustrated when he was broken in his first service game before going on to lose the first looked like it would be another short stay on the court for the 2022 Wimbledon finalist, but he started hitting the ball well before going on to take the next two sets. Kyrgios will next face Russian Karen Khachanov, but he is being cautious over just how much he can play given his wrist added: "This [win] puts some petrol in the tank but I need to be realistic and see how my wrist feels tomorrow because it is a grind out here."
BBC News
19-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Osaka wants to 'play with the big dogs' after Miami win
Former world number one Naomi Osaka wants to "play with the big dogs" again after battling to a three-set win against Yuliia Starodubtseva in the first round of the Miami came from a set down to beat Ukraine's Starodubtseva 3-6 6-4 6-3 and claim her first victory since the Australian Open second round in comes after the Japanese player described her first-round loss against Camila Osorio at Indian Wells two weeks ago as the "worst match I've ever played in my life"."I want to play with the big dogs so bad and I just see everyone playing so well and I want to do the same," she said after her two-and-a-half-hour epic against Starodubtseva."But I have to remember it's a process."The four-time Grand Slam winner has had several breaks from playing to prioritise her mental health as well as a maternity has not progressed past the third round of a major since her most recent triumph at the 2021 Australian Open."I knew that I wasn't playing too well, but I thought, 'let me try to stay on the court as long as possible', because I consider Miami my home," Osaka added."At Indian Wells I was just over-hitting a lot, so I tried to use my legs."I was going to run into every corner if I had to, and we were going to have to play for three hours if she was going to beat me."
