Brisbane, QLD, 19 November 2024 | Jackson Mansell

Australian men’s tennis has never been in better shape, according to former world No.13 Nick Kyrgios.

In July, there were 10 Aussies inside the ATP top 100 for the first time in 42 years, making for a promising time for Australian tennis – and one which Kyrgios believes could pave the way for Australia’s first Grand Slam men’s singles winner since 2002.

“I genuinely think it’s the strongest time in Australian tennis and we are all capable of making a run at a Grand Slam now,” said Kyrgios, the 2022 Wimbledon finalist.

“I think the draws are much more open than they used to be. To win a Grand Slam back in the day when I was in my prime, to beat Roger, Rafa and Novak in the same tournament was unheard of. Now it’s a lot more open and I think where Australian men’s tennis is at the moment. It’s exciting times.”

Several players have had breakout seasons in 2024.

Alexei Popyrin won his first Masters 1000 event in Montreal, Jordan Thompson broke into the top 30, while Alex de Minaur reached the top six and his maiden ATP Finals.

“I always knew Demon was going to be carrying the flag. He’s got another 10 to 12 years in his career for sure. I could see him playing until he’s at least 40 probably. Alexei what he did at the Masters event, Thanasi (Kokkinakis) coming back through injury and obviously always exciting to watch,” Kyrgios said.

He told The Sit-Down podcast: “I’m so happy for Jordan to see how well he’s gone, top 30 in the world and we literally grew up and played the exact same tournaments together. From eight years old, we played each other at Wimbledon and to see him having success is so cool.

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“These guys are all capable and I think I was the kind of the first one to knock on the door and show that it was possible, and then these guys started believing. Now they’re all having some amazing success.”

In the time since Kyrgios made his tour debut in 2013, Australia’s sole Grand Slam singles triumph came via Ash Barty. The former world No.1 won three Grand Slams, including her victory at Australian Open 2022.

“I would’ve loved to have played with Ash Barty at some stage,” Kyrgios said in the same podcast episode.

“I think she was by far one of the most talented female players to ever play the game. I think we would’ve done damage on the court for sure.”

The 29-year-old announced he will return to tennis at the Brisbane International after an 18-month hiatus.

During his time in Brisbane, Kyrgios hit with Cruz Hewitt, son of Australia’s most recent men’s Grand Slam champion, Lleyton Hewitt.

“It’s funny…I definitely give him some stick for it. I like trash talking a little bit but it’s cool,” Kyrgios said about his intergenerational moment with Cruz. “It’s a bit strange me obviously playing – and I’ve competed against his dad a lot – and now competing against him is funny.”

Lleyton Hewitt is embarking on his seventh Davis Cup Finals campaign as Australian captain in Malaga this week.

In the past two tournaments, Australia have finished runners-up and will be hoping they can win their first Davis Cup since 2003.

Having missed the team competition since 2019, Kyrgios wants to make a return after having positive dialogue with the Australian Open 2005 finalist.

“I had a conversation with Lleyton yesterday about potentially returning to the Davis Cup line-up. Just having these conversations again and being a part of it, hitting with these guys and just competing with them is something that I genuinely thought wasn’t going to be possible again,” he said.

“I miss the team environments, I love them. I do miss the home-and-away aspect of Davis Cup I will say. That was the most special thing ever.”

Listen to the full episode of The Sit-Down, a weekly podcast released each Monday featuring an in-depth interview with a notable tennis identity. Subscribe via The AO Show in your favourite podcast player.