Nick Kyrgios seems ready to shoot for the Wimbledon title again, with injury fears over last year’s finalist allayed after Australia’s big hope was drawn to play Belgian David Goffin in the first round at the All England Club.
The Canberra ace has been seeded No.30 for the championships amid fears that he may not play because of ongoing struggles with a long-standing knee injury.
He has had just competitive contest all year since knee surgery in January but his appearance in training at the All England Club and some confident-sounding social media messages suggested he was on course to compete next week.
Kyrgios would have pulled out before the draw if he had felt there was no chance he would be able to play only his second tour match in nine months.
But his inclusion in Friday’s draw suggests the man who lost to seven-time champion Novak Djokovic in last year’s final will be fit to take his place when the tournament starts on Monday.
It’s a testing opener against the 32-year-old Goffin, a four-time grand slam quarter-finalist who has had his own injury problems but was given a wildcard by the All England Club.
Kyrgios, whose seeding was bumped up from 31 to 30 after a late withdrawal, has ended up in the same half of the draw as No.2 seed Djokovic, who plays Argentina’s Pedro Cachin in the first round.
He could meet the defending champ who has won on his past four visits to London’s SW19 in the quarter-finals.
But he has a long way to go before that potential blockbuster, especially as he struggled so badly in his only match this year, losing in Stuttgart just over two weeks ago to a grass-court novice, China’s Wibing Yu.
Before any Djokovic clash, Kyrgios’s main hurdle would likely be a third-round encounter with Russia’s No.7 seed Andrey Rublev, who’s drawn another Australian Max Purcell in the opening round.
Earlier in the week, Kyrgios, who’s always enjoyed playing up to his tag as a Wimbledon rebel, had posted a photograph of himself at the All England Club, with the caption: “Some say I don’t fit in here. I show them my resume.”
Australia’s best men’s hope on current form, Queen’s finalist and 15th seed Alex de Minaur, has drawn another Belgian, qualifier Kimmer Coppejans, before a possible second-round encounter with 2021 finalist Matteo Berrettini.
Among the eight Aussie men in the main draw, in-form Sydneysider Jordan Thompson has a tough opener against Brandon Nakashima, who took Kyrgios to five sets at Wimbledon last year, but a win could set up a dream second-round tie with Djokovic.
There are only two Australian women competing in the singles, the fewest in seven years.
Daria Saville, after fighting her way back from a serious knee injury setback, has been given a tough draw against British No.1 Katie Boulter, who’s also the girlfriend of de Minaur.
Queensland left-hander Storm Hunter, the only Australian to get through the qualifying tournament, will play 21-year-old Chinese player Wang Xinyu.
Men’s top seed Carlos Alcaraz will face Jeremy Chardy in his opening contest, with Brisbane’s Jason Kubler a possible third-round opponent for the Spaniard.
WHO THE AUSSIES PLAY IN THE FIRST ROUND AT WIMBLEDON (PREFIX DENOTES SEEDING):
Men’s singles
15-Alex de Minaur v Kimmer Coppejans (BEL)
30-Nick Kyrgios v David Goffin (BEL)
Max Purcell v 7-Andrey Rublev (RUS)
Jordan Thompson v Brandon Nakashima (USA)
Jason Kubler v Ugo Humbert (FRA)
Alexei Popyrin v Dominic Stricker (SUI)
Chris O’Connell v Hamad Medjedovic (SRB)
Aleksandar Vukic v Daniel Altmaier (GER)
Women’s singles
Daria Saville v Katie Boulter (GBR)
Storm Hunter v Wang Xinyu (CHN)
