Nick Kyrgios believes that Jannik Sinner will go down as one of the greatest tennis players of all time – sparking incredulity from some of the Italian’s fans.
When Sinner agreed to accept a three-month ban for positive doping tests in February 2025 with the World Anti-Doping Agency, Kyrgios described it as a “sad day for tennis”.
Kyrgios continued to snipe at Sinner, but the two-time Australian Open champion maintained his innocence, in addition to sending a message to his chief critic head-on.
A month before his suspension, he said, “I haven’t done anything wrong. That’s why I’m still here. That’s why I’m still playing. I don’t want to respond to what Nick said or what other players say.”
Kyrgios has been persona non grata amongst Sinner fans ever since then. So to see the former Wimbledon finalist coming out and praising the five-time major winner has baffled many observers on social media.
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As part of an Instagram story spree, Kyrgios was asked about playing the likes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Sinner, and more, on Tuesday.
When describing the world No 1, Kyrgios, who served a short suspension after testing positive for cocaine earlier this year, said Sinner is a fantastic ball-striker, his serve has gone from being a weakness to a strength, and will win many more Grand Slams.
He wrote, “One of the best ball strikers the game has ever seen. Absolute machine from the back of the court. Is able to turn defence to offence with any shot.
“Only real weakness was his serve wasn’t able to generate a ton of free points, now has improved that and is one of the best pinpoint servers we have. Hard to attack.
“Volleys weren’t as natural as some of the other best players but has worked on his transition game well and is comfortable moving forward. Moves well for someone who is surprisingly tall. With more time [he] will most likely go down as one of the GOATs.”
When this circulated on X, many Sinner fans joked that Kyrgios had been hacked as there was no way the 31-year-old would speak in such glowing terms about the Wimbledon champion.
One wrote, “It’s been hacked, I can’t see any other logical explanation possible,” and another commented, “I’m doing badly!!! Now we’re looking for redemption?”
Someone else posted, “Tell me it’s AI (articifical intelligence)”, and another Sinner supporter tweeted, “Oh no, he does not get to say anything like this now.”
Sinner is currently out with a knee injury but the 25-year-old is likely to hit double figures for Grand Slams at this rate. So while Kyrgios has had his beef with Sinner before, it seems the former Australian Open doubles champion still recognises what a top player he is.
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