Still in Awe, Nick Kyrgios Reflects on Roger Federer’s Untouchable Masterclass at 36

Nick Kyrgios has repeatedly hailed his close friend Novak Djokovic as the greatest tennis player of all time, but he believes playing against Roger Federer was a completely different ball game. The Aussie faced Federer seven times in his career, and interestingly, after claiming a surprising victory in their very first meeting itself, in Madrid (2015), he never beat the Swiss Maestro again. “Nadal and Djokovic will let you work your way into the match a bit more, with your groundstrokes and stuff, but Federer can just make you feel like pure s—, makes the court look so small,” Kyrgios said on The JBK Show in January 2023. Fast forward to now, and the 29-year-old is still fanboying over Federer.

Kyrgios believes Federer is the “most complete player” because he makes the game look so effortless, “like the Michael Jordan of tennis.” Remember that iconic match between Federer and Kyrgios at the Miami Open, 2017? This was their third meeting on Tour; the Aussie had won their first match, but Kyrgios had to withdraw from their second match at the Indian Wells in 2017 due to an injury. So, Federer had yet to win against Kyrgios.

The Swiss was in great form that year, as he had ended his Grand Slam title drought by winning the AO and had also won the Indian Wells Masters. On the other hand, Kyrgios had previously reached the SF in Marseille and Acapulco before taking his flight to Miami. So, everything was well-poised for an epic battle, and Kyrgios drew the first blood in the first set, breaking Federer’s serve and taking a 5-3 lead. However, the Swiss broke back, taking the set to a tiebreak. The match ended at 7-6(9),6-7(9),7-6(5) in favor of the Swiss Maestro.

Kyrgios recently shared glimpses of Federer’s iconic shot from that famous match on his IG story, captioning it, “Explain to me how he makes this at 36 😂🥲.” The Aussie was quite impressed with Federer’s agility and elegance while stepping up to the net to finish off a point, even in the twilight of his career.

After that match, Federer said, “It did feel very good because you don’t very often play three breakers in a match. It’s nice to win those and winning breakers is always such a thrill.”

Kyrgios, on the other hand, took a lot of positives from that epic battle despite the loss. “I showed a lot of fight. Obviously, I’m an emotional guy. I had some ups and downs, a bit of a roller coaster, but ultimately I think I put in a good performance,” he said.

However, this wasn’t the first time Kyrgios shared highlights from that epic match on his social media account. Back in September 2023, he had shared a video of this SF match with the caption, “My favorite match.” Then, recently in March 2025, he yet again gave a two-word reaction to the old footage of him playing against Federer at the 2017 Miami Open. “Ridiculous tennis,” he wrote.

This match was one of the most electrifying matches in the history of this tournament, and hence, we often see highlights from that match popping up on social media.

When Federer announced his retirement from the sport in 2022, Kyrgios hailed him, saying, “No one will ever play the game like you.” The Aussie calls Roger Federer the “Original Genius.” Even when he lost to Novak Djokovic at the Wimbledon final in 2022, Kyrgios famously said, “He doesn’t make you feel as bad as Federer does at times.” But what does Federer have to think about Kyrgios?

“I really like his game”—Roger Federer heaps praise on Nick Kyrgios

Back in May 2014, Roger Federer had acknowledged Kyrgios’ outstanding performance at the French Open. Back then, he had spent a week training with Federer in Zurich as part of his preparations for Roland Garros. Sharing his thoughts about Kyrgios, Federer had said, “I really like his game. I think he’s very open to trying out things, going for the big shots. I think he’s got really great potential. I think he’s strong physically, but clearly he needs to keep working hard now to make sure he makes the next move and he’s solid for five hours, solid for two weeks, solid for one year, all that stuff.”

When Kyrgios beat Djokovic twice in 2017, Federer yet again showered praise on the Aussie, saying, “(It is) very impressive to beat Novak in back-to-back weeks, basically on Novak’s best surface.” Not only Federer, but even his former coach, Paul Annacone, claimed that Nick Kyrgios is the most talented player since Roger arrived on the scene. 

But hey, even Kyrgios thinks that he’s better than the ‘Big 3’ in one aspect of the game? What’s it? Well, in 2024, he made a bold claim by saying, “I’ve played against Djokovic, Federer, Nadal, and Murray. I have a higher tennis IQ than them.” To justify his statement, he highlighted how he reached the Wimbledon final without a coach in 2022. Well! Do you agree? Share your thoughts in the comments below.