Nick Kyrgios has devised a plan to take on Jannik Sinner. (Image: Nothing Major)
promised that he would turn their match into “an absolute riot” should the feuding pair meet at the .
Kyrgios has repeatedly laid into the world No. 1 and defending champion over his two positive drug tests last year, which Sinner successfully appealed and he was able to keep playing while an investigation continued.
The Aussie has been Sinner’s biggest critic throughout the entire process, initially calling for a two-year ban before then and then .
Sinner himself has refrained from entering into a public spat with Kyrgios, but could be forced to confront the 29-year-old in Melbourne.
Kyrgios has been given a wildcard by the organisers , while Sinner opens his title defence against Nicolas Jarry.
The pair can only meet in the final, having been drawn on opposite sides of the draw, but Kyrgios has promised a hostile atmosphere should he stand opposite Sinner at the tournament.
“Let’s be honest, I just want to go out there and I really want to play Sinner,” Kyrgios said on the podcast.
Nick Kyrgios and Jannik Sinner in 2022. (Image: Getty)
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“I thought about this (the game plan). If I played him in the , I would just get every single person in the crowd to get on him. I would just turn it into an absolute riot. All respect would go out the window and I would just do anything to win.”
The home crowd would likely be on Kyrgios’ side in the potential blockbuster match, but Sinner has plenty of fans in Australia after his title win a year ago. Kyrgios believes that their differences would make for quite the spectacle.
“I feel like why we love sport is because you have to have contrast in personalities,” Kyrgios added. “If I draw Sinner in the , everyone will watch because it’s contrasting personalities. We don’t like each other, and I think it’s healthy in sport.”
For Kyrgios, his first priority will be getting onto the court against Fearnley. He hasn’t played at a Grand Slam since 2022, owing to lengthy injury turmoil, but recently pulled out of a charity exhibition due to an abdominal strain.
“I’ve had an ultrasound on my abdominal and have a grade one strain,” Kyrgios said. “Will be resting and doing everything I can to be okay for the .”
He underwent surgery on his wrist in 2023 and conceded that it would be a “miracle” to return to the court again.
And while Kyrgios is speculating about what a late run at the to face Sinner would look like, he has to concentrate on Fearnley in the first round before looking any further.