Nick Kyrgios is set to make her Grand Slam return on home soil after using her protected ranking to gain entry to the Australian Open.
Kyrgios has endured two years of injuries since his last major tournament appearance at the 2022 US Open, where he reached the quarterfinals.
This followed a breakthrough to the Wimbledon final earlier that year, but knee, foot and wrist injuries prevented the 29-year-old from progressing further.
He is ready to make a return to a grand slam field starting January 12 in Melbourne, with a protected ranking of 21st.
Before that, Kyrgios intends to participate in a World Tennis League event in Abu Dhabi from December 19-22 before playing the Brisbane International later in the month.
Gold medalist at Tokyo 2020 Belinda Bencic also used her protected ranking to return to the Australian Open after giving birth to a daughter in April.
“Kyrgios and Bencic are among six men and six women competing… using protected rankings, setting the main draw entry ranking for both teams at 98th in the world,” tournament organizers confirmed in a statement .
Former world number 4 Kei Nishikori will also play with a protected ranking, making his first appearance at the Australian Open in men’s singles since 2021, the statement added.
Defending champions Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka, who top the men’s and women’s rankings, will be top seeds at Melbourne Park, along with 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic. aiming for a record 11th Australian Open title.
Additional reporting from Reuters
