The 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic and previous Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios will play doubles at the upcoming Brisbane International.
A social media post shared by BNP Paribas Open stated: “From rivals to teammates 🤝 @k1ngkyrg1os & @djokernole kick off 2025 by pairing up for doubles in Brisbane 🍿”
Both athletes, who became buddies after a feud, will utilize the Dec. 29-Jan. 5 ATP 250 tournament as preparation for the Australian Open the following month.
On the ATP Tour, Djokovic and Kyrgios have played against each other three times. The Australian won the first two meetings in 2017 before falling in four sets in the 2022 Wimbledon final.
Kyrgios has only participated in one singles circuit match in the past two years due to knee, foot, and wrist problems. He is expected to compete in the World Tennis League exhibition event in Abu Dhabi from December 19–22 and is also scheduled to make his competitive singles comeback in Brisbane.
For the 2025 season, he will play in the Australian Open with a protected ranking of 21st and will be reunited with Thanasi Kokkinakis in the men’s doubles.
At the Brisbane International, tennis athletes Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgious thrilled fans on their doubles debut, defeating Alexander Erler and Andreas Mies 6-4, 6-7(4).
Over the past years, the two athletes have changed from rivals to friends. Their unity was felt at the Pat Rafter Arena, which was packed with fans who yelled their names and added excitement to the environment during the match.
After their victory, Djokovic said: “I want to thank Nick for playing… He said the other day that it should be a pleasure to play with him, and it is. I’m glad to share the court with him on his comeback. I haven’t played too many doubles matches … in the last five years so whatever Nick was saying, I was following.”
With a powerful serve that almost won the first match, Australian Kyrgios made his tour-level comeback after missing nearly 18 months of action due to ailments to his knee, foot, and wrist. Despite everything, he didn’t exhibit any signs of rust.
Kygrios admitted that he did not want to take advantage of his comeback and stated, “I was just looking around at all the fans, this beautiful stadium. My comeback, this injury has been brutal … I don’t know how many Aussie summers I’ve got left… I was loving the energy. I’m so happy to be back out here. We promised we’d do this one time before either he goes or I go. So I’m glad we’re still alive (in the doubles).”
In a social media post, Kygrios said: “Honestly was emotional for me tonight. Soaking it all in….. after the last 18 months was never EVER thinking to play professional tennis ever again. I want to thank the EPIC crowd and my fans for the support ❤️👑🙏🏽 I’ll do everything in my power to try and get on the court!”
In an attempt to repeat their 2022 success in the upcoming Grand Slam, Australian athletes Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios will team up again to play in the Australian Open doubles this 2025 season.
Two years ago, the two defeated fellow Australians Max Purcell and Matthew Ebden in the final to win their first major title together. The fans have shown a great deal of attention and admiration for the exciting style of play from both athletes.
Furthermore, Kyrgios has a chance to improve his fitness after recent injuries. He has only participated in one singles circuit match in the last two years due to knee, foot, and wrist concerns.
In an interview with the media, Kokkinakis expressed his excitement about this comeback. He declared: “Everyone loved it last time, we loved it, it was so much fun… It’s definitely not going to be the priority for us [but] we feel like we owe it to people to get back out there and have some fun. It’s not something we’ve practiced, but singles is definitely the goal.”
He added: “If you have a big five-setter, with all due respect, the last thing you want to do is go out and play doubles the next day, but we’ll play it by ear and see how it goes.”
Kyrgios then stated: “It’s going to be great for tennis, great for fans in Australia, fans all over the world…. He’s a different cat. Obviously has a different sort of energy about him and he’s a hell of a player, so I think people are going to love having him back.”
“It’s been a long time coming. I think he’s been ready for a while now to play, but he wanted to make sure he’s really ready before he steps back, so hopefully he can stay healthy,” he said.
In the Brisbane International finals, Australian Open winner Aryna Sabalenka defeated Russian qualifier Polina Kudermetova 4-6 6-3 6-2 to prepare for her title defence at the year’s first Grand Slam.
Sabalenka will compete at Melbourne Park, hoping to become the first woman to win three consecutive Australian Open titles since Swiss champion Martina Hingis from 1997 to 1999.
With her win, the athlete said: “I’m super happy to lift this trophy… It’s a really important tournament before heading into the Australian Open. The final match was a bit tricky, (both of us) were over-hitting.”
She added: “I’m really curious about the average speed of our shots. It was a crazy match, and I’m really glad I got this win.”
In a social media post, Sabalenka shared: “Starting 2025 on the right foot 💪🏼Thank you Brisbane! 🫶🏼”
In the first set against Kudermetova, the world No. 1 from Belarus, who lost to Elena Rybakina in the previous year’s final before winning a second consecutive Melbourne Park title, looked slow and dropped her serve for the second time.
More so, Kudermetova was put under strain on service in the first game of the following set, but she overcame it and started to control play by hitting Sabalenka with more force from the baseline.
Sabalenka remarked: “That was really great tennis from her… It was really aggressive. She has some variations and she was using it really well. She definitely deserved to be in the final. I’m pretty sure if she continues working the way she is, then she will be in the top 50 soon.”
An amazing drop shot gave Sabalenka the lead, and the 26-year-old looked much more like her own powerful self in the remainder of the set as she forced a decider. To win her maiden title of the season, Sabalenka blocked Kudermetova’s late comeback attempt and broke in the last set with a clean crosscourt forehand winner, serving yet another reminder of her abilities.
One of the highlights of a new tennis season is the Melbourne Grand Slam, which Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka won in 2024.
The Grand Slam tournament will start on January 12 and end on January 26, 2025. In order to qualify, athletes must win three matches during the qualifying rounds, which will run from January 6-11, 2025.
Who are the athletes playing at the 2025 Australian Open?
Alongside defending champion Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and Novak Djokovic are expected to compete for the men’s title while Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff will vie for he women’s title currently held by Aeyna Sabalenka.
Novak Djokovic will be trying to capture a record 25th Grand Slam championship with Andy Murray, who recently announced his retirement, as his coach.
Taylor Fritz, the new world No. 4 who advanced to the Nitto ATP Finals final, will also be among the contenders. Furthermore, for the first time in three years, Nick Kyrgios will return to his home Grand Slam. Due to injury, Kyrgios has only played in one match in the past two seasons, but he is making a comeback in Melbourne, where he took home the doubles championship in 2022.
Jack Draper will be the leading British athlete to compete in the tournament.
On the women’s side, Swiatek, Gauff, Paolini, and Rybakina will be top contenders for the title held by Sabalenka. After losing in the 2023 final, Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen will be looking to make her comeback as well. Katie Boulter, the top-ranked British player, has never advanced past the second round of the Grand Slam.
Australian Open 2025 schedule
Here is the detailed schedule of the 2025 Australian Open:
Sunday, January 12: Men’s and women’s singles first round
Monday, January 13: Men’s and women’s singles first round
Tuesday, January 14: Men’s and women’s singles first round
Wednesday, January 15: Men’s and women’s singles second round
Thursday, January 16: Men’s and women’s singles second round
Friday, January 17: Men’s and women’s singles third round
Saturday, January 18: Men’s and women’s singles third round
Sunday, January 19: Men’s and women’s singles fourth round
Monday, January 20: Men’s and women’s singles fourth round
Tuesday, January 21: Men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals
Wednesday, January 22: Men’s and women’s singles quarter-finals
Thursday, January 23: Women’s singles semi-finals
Friday, January 24: Men’s singles semi-finals
Saturday, January 25: Women’s singles final, men’s doubles final
Sunday, January 26: Men’s singles final, women’s doubles final
Nick Kyrgios, a former Wimbledon finalist, surprisingly became part of Australia’s team for the upcoming Davis Cup match against Sweden at the end of the month.
In addition to world No. 8 Alex de Minaur, Jordan Thompson, and Thanasi Kokkinakis, Kyrgios was chosen by team captain Lleyton Hewitt to play for Australia in the match in Stockholm on January 31 and February 1.
With this opportunity, the 29-year-old athlete may be able to resume his doubles combination with teammate Kokkinakis, with whom he shared the Australian Open men’s doubles championships three years ago.
His last Davis Cup appearance was in November 2019. He then advanced to the Wimbledon final in 2022 before losing to Novak Djokovic in four sets.
Kyrgios’ health condition
Kyrgios has been selected to join the squad despite battling with knee, foot, and wrist injuries since 2022. He also recently shared that his participation in the Australian Open remains uncertain, depending on his health condition.
There were doubts about his capability to cope with the demands of Grand Slam tennis after he lost to Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in three sets at the Brisbane International last week.
Kyrgios admitted: “I think I almost need a miracle and I need, like, the stars to align for my wrist to hold up in a Grand Slam for sure.”
