Pat Rafter's boldest prediction: "I would never rule out Kyrgios in Australia"

Streaming Australian Open MD live tennis

🎾 Duckworth/Vukic vs Kokkinakis/Kyrgios

* You can watch and bet on this match live here..

Nick Kyrgios will once again have the media spotlight on his shoulders in his official return to competition. It will be during the ATP Brisbane 2025, where he has already been confirmed and will seek to get back in shape before the Open de Australia 2025. More than a year and a half without stepping onto a tennis court in competition, a circuit that is renewing itself and finding young players hitting the ball hard, doubts about his physical condition... his return is shrouded in uncertainty, but despite that, many legends of this sport do not rule out a great performance from the Canberra native.

This is the case with Patrick Rafter, who chooses to believe in the version of Nick that we might encounter. Despite never particularly excelling at his home Grand Slam (it is not the tournament in which he has the best record or gone the furthest) and the uncertainties he must address in his return to competition, his compatriot advocates for giving the benefit of the doubt to such unlimited talent.

"You would never entirely dismiss a guy with the talent Kyrgios has. He's an incredible talent. I don't know what he's been doing all this time, though. He's been out of this sport for a year and a half... it's going to be interesting. I have no expectations or understanding of how things will go for him, but he has an impressive game. Can he maintain it? Can his body hold up physically? Can his mind hold up as well? Those are his major challenges, especially his body. Playing at a competitive level is totally different from training, so I don't really know what to expect from him; I think everything is up in the air. When I say I have no expectations, I mean I wouldn't be surprised at all if he made it to the quarterfinals or semifinals, but I wouldn't be surprised either if he lost in the first round," Pat pointed out in statements to AAP.

RANKING-LESS WITH MANY DOUBTS

The Australian faces his return to competition thanks to the protected ranking: he has lost all his ranking points and will need, once he exhausts these wildcards, invitations to access each ATP event. His first stop will be Brisbane, where he could face players like Djokovic, Rune, Dimitrov, or Tiafoe in the first round, similar to what could happen at the Open de Australia 2025, where he has even pointed out a possible match against Jannik Sinner as extra motivation. Only time will tell us what the Canberra native is capable of.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, La predicción más atrevida de Pat Rafter: "Nunca descartaría a Kyrgios en Australia"