Patrick Mouratoglou has revealed Nick Kyrgios is one player he would like to coach in the future as he proclaimed there are “a lot of very smart things” that could “make him a Grand Slam winner.”
The renowned coach thinks Kyrgios would be “one of the most exciting guys” to work with and believes the key to unlocking the Australian’s “incredible potential” would be to “take pressure away.”
Mouratoglou, who coaches at his Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in France, has worked with a host of current and retired tennis stars, including Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Coco Gauff, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Holger Rune, Marcos Baghdatis, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Grigor Dimitrov and Laura Robson.
Kyrgios was a runner-up at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, where he was defeated by 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in the final. The former world No 13 fell 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-7(3) to the great Serbian in an entertaining encounter in his only appearance in a major singles title match.
Following an excellent 2022 season, Kyrgios has been sidelined through injury for much of the last 15 months and played his only competitive match of 2023 in June.
The Australian underwent knee surgery in January last year and has suffered further setbacks, including a wrist injury that derailed his intended comeback during the 2023 grass-court season. Kyrgios is yet to confirm when he will return as he continues to work towards fitness.
Mouratoglou has named Kyrgios as a player he would want the opportunity to coach, but recognised this depends on the Aussie’s willingness to be coached.
“I think he would be one of the most exciting guys to coach. The thing is, for someone to have a coach, he needs to want it,” said the Frenchman in an interview with The Age.
“You cannot work with a player who doesn’t want a coach. So that will be his decision one day, or maybe never, we’ll see. This guy has an incredible potential.
“He’s complicated, he’s complex. Sometimes I think I’m not even sure he understands himself, but I think from the side watching him for so many years, I think I understand him.
“I mean I’m not the only one probably, but I can feel him. I think there are a lot of very smart things to do with him to make him a Grand Slam winner, or more.
“You cannot coach him like you would coach anyone [else]. For him, you have to smartly take pressure away from him. And let him face pressure, but not for him to know that he is facing pressure. And he will learn to like it.”
A potential collaboration between Mouratoglou and Kyrgios appears unlikely for the foreseeable future, however, given the Frenchman reunited with world No 7 Holger Rune last week.
Mouratoglou’s re-appointment comes after Rune recently split with both Boris Becker and Severin Luthi, having assembled a new coaching team for the 2024 season.
Luthi — who departed at the end of January — had only been appointed in December, while Becker — who left earlier this month — had been hired in October.
Mouratoglou coached Rune from October 2022 to August 2023, with a very brief break during the spring, helping him win the 2022 Paris Masters and finish as a runner-up in Monte Carlo and Rome. Rune reached a career-high ranking of world No 4 before parting ways with Mouratoglou in August last year.
The 20-year-old Dane is currently in action at the Mexican Open in Acapulco, where he will face Dominik Koepfer in the quarter-finals on Thursday.
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