New York native Aleksandar Kovacevic dispatched Nick Kyrgios to win on his debut at the Brisbane International.
The world No.58 needed just 58 minutes to send the Aussie packing, behind pinpoint serving. Kovacevic won 25 of 26 first-serve points, and 15 of 21 second-serve points as he never faced a break point.
He converted his only two chances against the former Wimbledon finalist to set a second-round matchup with Great Britain’s Cameron Norrie.
Upbeat Kyrgios, who is hoping to pick up an Australian Open wild card, took the loss in stride.
“I feel good and I’m going to be able to try and use it as a building block, that’s my goal obviously, and not just AO but this year, for whatever this year holds, I do want to continue to play as much as I can, and we’ll see, yeah,” he said.
Kyrgios talked plenty about himself, his past and the injuries that have sabotaged his game since his best year in 2022, but he also made sure he credited his opponent.
“Credit to my opponent today. He played lights out. You can tell that he’s new to the tour, locked in, excited, and he’s a hell of a player,” he said of the former University of Illinois standout.
“You know, he’s going to be one to watch, for sure. He’s obviously had a breakthrough year last year and he’s going to continue to have big wins. I want to give my credit to my opponent, as well. It’s not like he played like shit or something.”
Kyrgios, ranked 670, hopes to continue working in order to build some momentum. He intends to play as much as he can in 2026.
“I haven’t played a lot of matches so that makes it tough as well. The energy, the match energy is different. Yeah, man, it’s tough,” he said.
“As of right now, I’m exactly where I actually want to be. You know, obviously the result, can’t win them all. Right now, I’m okay taking the loss on my chin and moving forward and just building and getting out there and playing more. Can’t take these moments for granted.”
