Nick Kyrgios has been ruled out of a return to Wimbledon after the Australian suffered a setback in his recovery from a knee injury.
Kyrgios was beaten in the final at the grass-court grand slam by Novak Djokovic in 2022 but has since played more and more sparingly amid significant fitness issues.
A planned returned to action in the doubles at the French Open was scuppered by an aggravation of an old injury, and the 30-year-old has now confirmed that he will be unable to compete on his favourite surface over the next couple of months.
“I’ve hit a small setback in my recovery and unfortunately I won’t make it back for grass season this year,” Kyrgios said on Instagram.
“I know how much you’ve been looking forward to seeing me out there and I’m genuinely sorry to disappoint. This is just a bump in the road though and I’m already working hard to get back stronger than ever.”
Kyrgios’s surprise run in 2022 appeared to mark his arrival as a singles force but he has featured only once at a grand slam since a quarter-final exit of the US Open in that same year.
He suffered a first-round exit to Great Britain’s Jacob Fearnley on home soil at the Australian Open in January and hinted it may be his final appearance in Melbourne, where he won his only grand slam title to date alongside Thanasi Kokkinakis in the men’s doubles in 2022.
Kyrgios has played a total of six competitive matches since the end of 2022, with a win against Mackenzie McDonald in the first round of the Miami Masters his sole victory.
