This season seems to be slipping away from Nick Kyrgios, with the injured Aussie pulling out of his fifth tournament in less than two months.
The former Wimbledon finalist who underwent a knee procedure on the eve of his intended start at the Australian Open in January, has played – and lost – just once ATP match this season; he went down in the Stuttgart first round in June to a Chinese opponent.
On Tuesday, the No. 35 whose ranking is set for a major fall, added next week’s Toronto Masters to previous withdrawals from Halle, Mallorca, Wimbledon and Washington.
There is no indication when he might return to tennis – if at all.
Asked recently about his potential longevity in a sport where Roger Federer retired at age 41 and Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are still going in their late-to-mid 30s, Kyrgios left little doubt as to his own priorities.
“No f**king chance. No way. Bro, there’s no chance I’m playing until 33. Nah, I promise you, when I’m gone, you’ll never see me again.”
Meanwhile, veteran stager Venus Williams, 43. was handed a wildcard into the Montreal WTA 1000 tournament, where she played a final in 2014, losing to Agnieska Radwanska.
