Nick Kyrgios admits Novak Djokovic was simply too good for him in the 2022 Wimbledon final, but also suggests that he would have the title had he played "someone like Rafael Nadal."
Leading up to 2022 Wimbledon, Kyrgios made back-to-back grass semifinals in Stuttgart and Halle. The Australian's strong play continued at The Championships, where he made his maiden Grand Slam singles final. Standing between Kyrgios and his first Grand Slam title was Djokovic - who at the time was seeking to win his fourth consecutive Wimbledon title.
Playing in his first Major singles final, Kyrgios made a fine start and took the opening set. While the Australian kept playing at a high level for the rest of the match, he failed to deliver in some key moments as Djokovic came back to win 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6 (3).
Kyrgios: Had I played someone like Nadal in the Wimbledon final, I would have done better
"I don't think I could have done better. I was solid overall. I just played a bad tie-break in the fourth set. He also broke me when I was 40-0 up on my serve in the third, that's just unthinkable. If I had played someone like Rafa in the final, I would have done better. But Novak is different, he was in his thirtieth final, something like that, whereas it was my first. He's so strong," the 30-year-old said in an interview for the UTS.
If you can recall, Kyrgios and Nadal were actually scheduled to meet in the Wimbledon semifinal that year. But after contracting an abdominal injury during a quarterfinal win against Taylor Fritz and having an MRI, the Spanish tennis icon said that it wasn't possible for him to make it through two best-of-five-set matches and gave a walkover to the Australian.
Kyrgios hasn't made any appearances at The All England Club since 2022 due to wrist and knee injuries.
