Thanasi Kokkinakis has successfully undergone shoulder surgery. The surgery which will keep him out of his home events, including the Australian Open. He is set to return in March.
Kokkinakis Losing Just Over 100 Points
With the Aussie teen set to be out until March, he will be unable to defend over 100 points from January to March. To be specific, the 19-year-old will be dropping 129 points from now until his return. Over a third of those points came from the Australian Open where he used his wildcard last year to help him get to the second round after upsetting Latvian Ernests Gulbis in the opening round. His second round loss to Sam Groth earned him 45 points, defending his points from 2014 where he lost to Rafael Nadal.
Delray Beach represents the tournament where he’ll be dropping the second most points. The tournament, which takes place in mid-February, will see Kokkinakis drop 32 points. Last year, he battled his way through qualifying and won a main draw match before crashing out to Ivo Karlovic in two tight sets.
Should everything go well, Kokkinakis will get a shot to defend his points at Indian Wells. Last year, he was a fourth rounder at the event, falling to countryman Bernard Tomic in three sets.
Nick Kyrgios Speaks About Kokkinakis
Kyrgios is a good friend of Kokkinakis’ and believes that his countryman still has plenty of tennis to look forward to this year. “It’s tough for him. He was pretty hyped about playing at the Australian Open, Kyrgios said. I’m sure he will come back stronger than ever, and he will get the opportunity to play in many Australian Opens.”
Kyrgios is also unsure to see if his friend will come out to Melbourne Park post-surgery to come out and watch. “I’ve texted him, Kyrgios said. I’m sure he will do what he thinks is best for him and his tennis.” Kyrgios, the Aussie number two, is looking to defend quarterfinal points at the Australian this year.
Currently, he is ranked 30th in the world and could be seeded should the players behind him are unable to earn enough points to pass him in the ranks. Jeremy Chardy and Steve Johnson are right within striking distance of Kyrgios in the rankings and could pass him since the Aussie is playing in the Hopman Cup this week which does not count towards a players’ ranking points. Joao Sousa, Philipp Kohlschreiber, and Leonardo Mayer could pass Kyrgios and knock him from the seeds with a strong showing in their respective opening week tournament should they play in one. Alexandr Dolgopolov is also about 100 points behind Kyrgios but is representing Ukraine at the Hopman Cup.