Nick Kyrgios’s relationship with the Indian Wells tournament is marked by potential endings. It was here, in 2015, during a match against Grigor Dimitrov, that he first sprained his wrist. Despite continuing to compete at a high level for seven years, a practice session at Wimbledon 2023 significantly aggravated the existing issue, leading to surgery and a prolonged absence. Fast forward to 2025. Following a comeback season marked by visible discomfort in Brisbane against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, his participation in the current BNP Paribas Open is in serious doubt. Is this a troubling repeat of his recent struggles?

Nick Kyrgios’s potential return to singles action at the BNP Paribas Open generated excitement early last month, with his name appearing in the official press release. However, Kyrgios’s history of last-minute withdrawals, exemplified by his absence from the 2023 Australian and US Opens, cast doubt on his actual participation. True to form, despite being scheduled for two practice sessions on Sunday, he failed to appear, leaving eager fans disappointed.

Yet, glimpses of Kyrgios surfaced in the Coachella Valley, first at a charity pickleball event alongside Naomi Osaka, and then on the practice courts at Indian Wells. However, during his Tuesday’s practice session, Kyrgios, who was all set to play against the Dutchman Botic Van de Zandschulp in the R128 of the 2025 Indian Wells Masters, was seen in some discomfort with his wrist. He even had to stop his practice session, and later on, his team came up to have a look at his right wrist. He walked off the court a few minutes later.

A few hours ago, an X account, named, Septimo Game, posted, “Sound the alarm: Nick Kyrgios, who if he wins his debut against a player from the Qualifiers, will face Novak Djokovic in Indian Wells, had to stop his training today with the Japanese Sho Shimabukuro due to new discomfort in his wrist.” (Translated from Spanish)

Well, while speaking about his sufferings with his wrists before the 2025 AO, Kyrgios said, “I’ve got six holes in my hand and one in my arm [from surgery]. Not one tennis player has ever had this surgery and come back and tried to play again.” Although he took part in his Home Slam, he was defeated by Jacob Fearnley (GBR) in the first round itself. 

Previously, while speaking about the dark phases of his career, Kyrgios had once mentioned that he wasn’t even sure if he’d ever manage to make a comeback. Even Michael Sandow, the specialist who had helped him recover, revealed that this injury had left Nick Kyrgios “very depressed and disabled” when they met last year in Adelaide. As it stopped him from leading a normal life.

Although he still has a bit of time to recover, it’d be interesting to see if he somehow manages to get back to his full fitness levels ahead of this enticing first-round clash. Or are we going to see him getting replaced by a lucky loser?

In an interesting comment last year, he claimed, “My target is a Grand Slam, I think that will be the only thing that will shut people.” However, as time went by, we saw him outlining his goals for the 2025 season in a more realistic way.

In January this year, Nick Kyrgios said, “For me, I don’t think anything about that (ranking points) at all, it’s more about just getting healthy, getting back playing and enjoying the competition and coming back from the injury I had.”

As things stand, forget about Grand Slams and ranking points; keeping himself fit for the rest of the year looks to be the biggest challenge for Kyrgios at the moment. Talking about challenges, suppose the Aussie makes himself fit ahead of the first-round match and secures a victory against Zandschulp; there will be yet another bigger challenge waiting for him in the next round. What’s it?

Nick Kyrgios could face his close friend, Novak Djokovic, in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open

From being sworn enemies to being two really close friends, Nick Kyrgios and Novak Djokovic have come a long way! In 2019, during a conversation, the Aussie claimed Djokovic has a “sick obsession” with wanting to be liked. Not only that, he further added, “He just wants to be like Roger [Federer]. This whole celebration thing that he does after matches, it’s like so cringeworthy. It’s very cringeworthy.”

After sharing a few heated moments in the past, the two rivals finally came closer to each other and created a unique camaraderie in 2022. It all started when Nick Kyrgios showed his support for the Serb during his tough times at the 2022 AO. Djokovic had then said, “You (Kyrgios) were one of the very few colleagues on the tour to use his platform, use his voice, to support me (during the deportation) and that is something I will never forget.”

Then, just a few months ago, the duo was spotted sharing laughter on the same side of the court during their doubles event at the Brisbane International. Now, if Kyrgios manages to get back to his fitness levels and wins his first-round match, then we could see both these friends meeting each other yet again on the Tour, but this time, they’ll be standing on opposite sides.

Well, just like Kyrgios, even Djokovic has struggled a bit with injuries this year. He was forced to pull out of his SF match against Alexander Zverev at the 2025 AO. Currently, he’s eyeing his sixth Indian Wells title. His last title triumph in this tournament came way back in 2016, and Nick Kyrgios could be one of the hurdles that he has to overcome before finally getting the chance to get his hand on the title. And history is proof!

In 2017, Nick Kyrgios delivered a stunning double blow to Novak Djokovic, defeating him in both Acapulco and Indian Wells. The Indian Wells victory was particularly significant, as Kyrgios ended Djokovic’s three-year reign as champion with a decisive 6-4, 7-6 win, marking Djokovic’s first loss at the tournament since 2013.

Do you think with a fully fit Nick Kyrgios the history will repeat itself?