Nick Kyrgios broke down in tears courtside after suffering a fresh injury blow on Thursday night, retiring from his BNP Paribas Open first-round match against Botic van de Zandschulp. Kyrgios trailed the Dutchman 6-7 (7-9) 0-3 at Indian Wells but was showcasing some good tennis in his latest comeback before being forced to bow out.
The 29-year-old cut his practice session short earlier this week due to wrist pain, admitting at the time that he “couldn’t catch a break at the moment” with his body. He looked bright against Van de Zandschulp and held a set point during the first-set tiebreaker, which he ultimately lost before falling 3-0 down in the second set. It was clear something was bothering Kyrgios, and he then grew visibly emotional during a conversation with his trainer before conceding the match.
Van de Zandschulp progressed to face Kyrgios’ close friend Novak Djokovic in the second round, while the injury-hit Australian continues to battle to overcome his long-term wrist problem.
“I wasn’t too confident that I was going to be able to play today, to be honest,” Kyrgios admitted after his Indian Wells exit.
“Two days ago in practice, I had to stop my practice because I felt pain in my wrist. I felt like it was OK to take to the court [but it] just got progressively worse. I started feeling sharp pain in my wrist.”
He added: “This process has been probably one of the biggest challenges I’ve faced in my life. Reality, it’s not too bad, but for my tennis career, it’s by far the biggest.
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