Post Wimbledon loss, Kyrgios humbly admits 'Djokovic is God'; backtracks on 2019 remarks

Wimbledon 2022 finalist Nick Kyrgios showcased a rare sign of respect for top seed Novak Djokovic after suffering a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 defeat in the final. After having slammed the Serbian for his behaviour previously, the Australian admitted that he is somewhat like a 'God.' Kyrgios had stated in 2019 that no matter how much Djokovic wins, he would never be the greatest to him.

Nick Kyrgios backtracks on 2019 statements regarding Djokovic

After losing the Wimbledon 2022 final against Novak Djokovic, Nick Kyrgios humbly stated, "Yeah he’s a bit of a god I’m not gonna lie." He then laughed before adding, "I thought I played well. First of all, I wanna congratulate Novak. He's won this championship I don't even know how many times anymore."

Djokovic won his seventh title at the All England Club and his fourth consecutive after he defeated Kyrgios in the Wimbledon 2022 final. The Serbian put up an utterly dominant display as he not only broke Kyrgios' serve twice but also managed to win most of his points on his own serve.

Kyrgios' latest comments come as a huge surprise as in 2019 he slammed Djokovic. On that occasion, the Australian told the No Challenges Remaining podcast, "I feel he (Novak Djokovic) wants to be liked so much that I just can’t stand him. This celebration thing is so cringe-worthy. He’s unbelievable, a champion of the sport, one of the greatest we will ever see. I think he will get the grand slam count and overtake Federer. But we’re talking about a guy who pulled out of the Australian Open one year because it was too hot. No matter how many grand slams he wins, he will never be the greatest to me."

Kyrgios then went on to state who he thought was the greatest of all time by demeaning Djokovic once again. "I’ve played him twice and I’m sorry but if you cannot beat me, you cannot be the greatest of all time. Look at how much I train and put in … it’s zero compared to him. For me, Federer will always be the greatest of all time. What Rafa has done has been pretty scary too." Djokovic's first win over Kyrgios could not come at a better time as it came in the all-important Grand Slam final of Wimbledon.

Image: AP