Nick Kyrgios said he feared he would never play tennis again after claiming his first ATP Tour victory since 2022 on Wednesday.
The Australian fought back from a set down to beat Mackenzie McDonald 3-6 6-3 6-4 at the Miami Open.
Kyrgios has struggled with injuries in the past two years and retired from the first round at Indian Wells earlier this month because of an issue with his right wrist, on which he had surgery in September 2023.
Prior to that, the 29-year-old also struggled with knee and foot injuries over an 18-month period, before making his return at the start of the year at the Australian Open.
“To come off and get a win and feel like I belong again was special,” he said.
“I never thought I would play tennis again to be brutally honest with you.
“I was having conversations with my camp and my team… and I said: ‘I don’t know how long I can keep doing this for.'”
Kyrgios struggled from the start and looked frustrated when he was broken in his first service game before going on to lose the first set.
It looked like it would be another short stay on the court for the 2022 Wimbledon finalist, but he started hitting the ball well before going on to take the next two sets.
Kyrgios will next face Russian Karen Khachanov, but he is being cautious over just how much he can play given his wrist issue.
He added: “This [win] puts some petrol in the tank but I need to be realistic and see how my wrist feels tomorrow because it is a grind out here.”
