Nick Kyrgios will drop out of the ATP top-100 ranking for the first time since last March due to his recent injury issues.
The 28-year-old Australian tennis star has withdrawn from this week’s Washington Open, where he won in 2022 and 2019.
What happened?
Kyrgios has not played a single Grand Slam this year and his points from last year's tournament have expired, causing his ranking to drop from No.35 to 92.
He has also withdrawn from next week’s Masters 1000 event in Toronto, which will result in a further loss of 180 points.
The Australian tennis star had surgery on a meniscus tear on his left knee earlier this year after being forced to pull out of the Australian Open.
Why it matters for Nick Kyrgios
Kyrgios' injury woes have been ongoing, and he later withdrew from Wimbledon just hours before his comeback to Grand Slam tennis with another injury.
He described the surgery as “quite a serious surgery” and has been struggling to recover.
What comes next?
Kyrgios has not yet ruled himself out of the Cincinnati Masters or the US Open, both later this month.
But he faces a doomsday scenario if his availability changes, which could see him drop as low as 400 or 500 in the rankings.
As of last year's US Open, Kyrgios had earned over $12 million in career prize money and was ranked as high as 13 in 2016 and 2017.
He won the doubles at the Australian Open in 2022 when he partnered with good friend Thanasi Kokkinakis.
Kyrgios' most recent Grand Slam appearance was at last year’s US Open, and he has been battling to regain his form since then.
He has 225 points coming off in the next two weeks, and 360 at the US Open; after that he’s only got 90 points left in total.
The possibility of dropping out of the top 500 is now a reality for Kyrgios if his injury woes continue.