"None of you really know me. You don't spend time with me, you only see what's going on on the court", balances the 27-year-old Australian, qualified without playing for his first final in a Grand Slam tournament after the abandonment of Rafael Nadal, whom he was to face on Friday in the semi-finals at Wimbledon.

"I really try to separate the moments: off the court, I have a good time with my team, my girlfriend, then when I enter the court, I put myself in match mode", he develops .

The problem is that, off the court, his way of life was not that of a very high level athlete, which probably prevented him, according to the other players on the circuit, from having another track record.

For his first Wimbledon, in 2014, for which he was invited, he had climbed into the quarters by beating Nadal in the 8th round.

But since then, he had only played another Grand Slam quarterback (Australian Open 2015) and had never reached the semis of a Major before the 2022 edition of the London tournament.

Australian Nick Kyrgios at a press conference at Wimbledon on July 4, 2022 in London Joe TOTH AELTC/AFP/Archives

At the pub before Nadal

“There was one time when I was picked up from a pub at 4 a.m. to go and play against Nadal in the second round (of Wimbledon). My agent had to pick me up from the pub at 4 a.m. I'm going to Center Court...", he says today, estimating "to come back from afar".

This famous match, he lost it in four sets with two tie-breaks to finish.

It was in 2019, the year he remembers having suicidal thoughts.

If he seems to have come out of this dark period, he remains nonetheless, on the courts, like a pressure cooker ready to explode.

Like his third round duel against Stefanos Tsitsipas where he transformed the match into a "circus", according to the words of the Greek who, at the end of the meeting, described the Australian as "brute" with a "demonic side".

Critics flew after this game, but Kyrgios doesn't care.

Australian Nick Kyrgios during the Wimbledon round of 16 against Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas on July 2, 2022 in London Glyn KIRK AFP/Archives

"It makes me laugh. It's so fun. We joke about it with my team. It's hilarious. I read things when I wake up and I laugh," he comments.

One of his defenses is to tell the referee that he is the star that people want and come to see.

However, since then, he has played peacefully.

Without coach

"I feel good, serene, mature... I'm blessed. I feel good about myself," he says, emphasizing the role played by the small troop that accompanies him.

Without a coach because, he says, "I wouldn't want to put that weight on anyone's shoulders" and "nobody knows my tennis as well as I do".

But with his physio who is "one of (his) best friends", his agent who "is (his) best friend", and the "best girlfriend ever".

Australian Nick Kyrgios during his Wimbledon round of 16 match against Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas on July 2, 2022 in London Glyn KIRK AFP/Archives

He feels this new well-being, including in the thick of battle, as he says after his round of 16 against Brandon Nakashima: "It's probably the first time in my career that, even if I don't wasn't playing very well, I managed to say to myself: + Wow, look where you got to. You're at Wimbledon and you're doing a good performance mentally +. It was rewarding".

On the right track (although he will have to appear in court in Canberra at the beginning of August for assault), he who sharpens his competitive mind by playing basketball at home "with guys who are dogs" has not yet assimilated all the codes of tennis, and even less those of the very traditional All England Lawn Tennis Club which notably imposes an almost totally white outfit.

So his entering the court with red basketball shoes, which he replaces with white tennis shoes just before playing?

"I do what I want," he asserts.

"I'm not above the rules, I like to wear my Jordans. If someone tells me something, next time I'll wear white ones."

© 2022 AFP