Kyrgios calls on Djokovic to druk deur

NICK Kyrgios urged Novak Djokovic to stay in tennis “as long as possible” after the Serbian great pulled out of his only lead-up tournament to the Australian Open yesterday, saying he was “not quite physically ready”.

The 38-year-old was planning to use the Adelaide International from January 12 as a springboard to the opening Grand Slam at Melbourne Park a week later where he is targeting an 11th title and elusive 25th major crown.

But he wrote on Instagram: “To all my fans in Adelaide, unfortunately I’m not quite physically ready to compete in the Adelaide International next week.

“It’s personally very disappointing to me, as I have such great memories of winning the title there two years ago. I was really excited about returning as it truly felt like playing at home.

“My focus is now on my preparation for the Australian Open and I look forward to arriving in Melbourne soon and seeing all the tennis fans in Australia.”

Kyrgios, though, told the Sydney Morning Herald: “There’s obviously something there that he wants to achieve, whether it’s another Grand Slam or something else.

“But I think we should just cherish the fact that someone that old in our sport is still at the top of it and still gives everything to it.

“The longer we have guys like this around, the better it is for our sport.

"I feel like there's been a void in the sport ever since (Roger) Federer and (Rafael) Nadal left ... and obviously when Novak goes, that era is completely gone. I want him to stay for as long as possible.”

Djokovic indicated last year that he wanted to stay in the sport until the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics so he could defend the gold medal he won in Paris.