- Kyrgios has disclosed that in 2019, he had suicidal thoughts
- He checked into a mental health facility in London after losing to Rafael Nadal
- He contemplated suicide
Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios has disclosed that in 2019, he had suicidal thoughts and was checked into a mental health facility in London after losing to Rafael Nadal.
Kyrgios lost to Nadal in the second-round match, a loss that triggered suicidal thoughts after losing in four sets. Nadal won 3-6, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7 against the Aussie.
Kyrgios would later don a long white sleeve on his right arm to hide his self-inflicted injuries.
He is revealing all this in a new Netflix docu-series dubbed ‘Break Point’ premiering on June 21.
“I was genuinely contemplating if I wanted to commit suicide. I lost at Wimbledon. I woke up and my dad was sitting on the bed, full-blown crying. That was the big wake-up call for me,” he says in episode six of the series.
Nick Kyrgios outburst. Photo/Sporting News
He lightly says that ending up in the psych ward helped him figure out his problems in the right way.
Depression pushed him to heavy drinking, drug abuse, and loss of relationships with his family and friends.
He always had on-court anger issues that cost him huge fines and Wimbledon 2019 is the moment he hit rock bottom.
Kyrgios admits he was unable to handle the strain and expectation of having all eyes on him and he despised the person he was becoming.
His father, George, says that following his son’s breakdown, he called him out over the decisions he was making in life.
As he readies for another round of Wimbledon, all the sad memories are rushing back. He now understands why people view him as an outcast in tennis.
Fortunately, he also understands better what he has to offer the tennis community but he still has challenges associated with ‘people of colour’.
“I know that I sell a lot of tickets. I sell out stadiums all around the world. But I know I’m not really accepted. Especially in the tennis world, being a white, privileged sport,” he continues.
The Aussie only played at the Australian preseason exhibition match where he injured his knee. He underwent surgery and hasn’t played in any tournament to date.
Wimbledon will be his first tournament this year. He complained in the recent past about the many clay court events on the ATP Tour making most top 100 players unknown to him because they only attend clay events.
Nick Kyrgios. Photo.Independent.Ie
Meanwhile, on February 3, Kyrgios, pleaded guilty to assaulting his ex-girlfriend Chiara Passari before a Canberra court but was exempted from conviction under Australian criminal law.
He took the pleas after his attorney’s failed attempt to have the assault charges dropped due to mental health issues, the 27-year-old had been battling.
During a dispute in Canberra in 2021, Kyrgios pushed Passari onto the sidewalk, according to evidence presented in court. When deciding not to charge him with a crime, Magistrate Beth Campbell referred to the occurrence as “a single act of foolishness or frustration.”
In a statement following the decision, Kyrgios expressed his gratitude to the court for acquitting him of the charges. He said that at the time of the incident, he was in bad shape and state mentally.
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