Nick Kyrgios is backing his grasscourt prowess to offset health concerns as he races the clock to be fully fit for what looms as a gruelling Wimbledon campaign.
Kyrgios wrapped up his preparations for the London grand slam with another exhibition win at The Boodles in Buckinghamshire, a 6-7 6-2 (10-5) victory over Viktor Troicki after beating Philipp Kohlschreiber in straight sets on Thursday.
The twin successes came after Kyrgios pulled the pin at Queen's just one set into his grasscourt season after falling and aggravating a longstanding hip injury.
"I'm feeling okay. I'm definitely not 100 per cent, but I'm doing everything I can to get there," Australia's 20th seed said ahead of his first-round match at the All England Club on Monday.
"Another win so another little bit of a confidence booster going into Wimbledon."
After three straight appearances in the second week on tennis's most hallowed courts, Kyrgios launches his latest title quest against Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert.
The two have never met in singles but Kyrgios and Davis Cup teammate Jordan Thompson enjoyed a doubles victory over Herbert and Nicolas Mahut, the world's second-ranked pairing, at last month's French Open in Paris.
"I've seen him play a lot," Kyrgios said.
"He's very capable, loves this surface, he serves well and comes forward very well so I know it's going to be a tough match.
"I don't want to think about that now. I want to think about training and recovery for the next couple of days and we'll see how it goes."
Facing a potentially devilish draw with projected second-week confrontations with top-seeded titleholder Andy Murray, US Open winner Stan Wawrinka and grand slam giants Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, Kyrgios has good reason not to look too far ahead.
But his impressive record and some of his most cherished performances at tennis's showpiece event are fuelling his hopes of a serious run at the title.
"My best results have come on the grass so it's definitely my favourite surface," Kyrgios said.
"Obviously the one that stands out was the win against Nadal (in 2014).
"I played a memorable match against (Richard) Gasquet as well, saving nine match points at Wimbledon, so grass is probably my most memorable surface as well."
If he takes care of Herbert, the 22-year-old could play two more talented Frenchmen — Benoit Paire and 16th seed Lucas Pouille — before possibly needing to take down four of the so-called big five in successive matches to lift the trophy.
Share
