Sports

Kyrgios in a fight to prove his French Open fitness

Nick Kyrgios is locked in a fierce French Open fitness battle as Bernard Tomic and Thanasi Kokkinakis bid to qualify for the clay-court grand slam beginning on Sunday.

Kyrgios will test his injured elbow this week playing doubles in Lyon with American Jack Sock.

Nick Kyrgios has a battle ahead of him to find form for the French Open.

Photo: Alex Ellinghausen

The 23-year-old was seeded 22nd on Sunday but is a doubtful starter for Roland Garros, having not played in six weeks.

Kyrgios has been working around the clock to regain full health after returning home to Canberra last month for a cortisone shot to treat his long-standing issue.

After practising in Rome last week, the two-time grand slam quarter-finalist opted to ease his way back in doubles in a worrying sign also ahead of Wimbledon beginning in six weeks.

Advertisement

Kyrgios and Sock are scheduled to face Joao Sousa and Federico Delbonis in the first round in Lyon on Tuesday.

Kokkinakis, who is also on the comeback from injury, and Tomic are among six Australians in the men's qualifying event at Roland Garros.

They need to win three matches this week to make the main draw.

Tomic, who won four straight matches on clay for the first time in his career last week to reach the final of a Challenger event in the south of France, plays Darian King of Barbados in the first round of qualifying on Tuesday morning.

Kokkinakis opens against Frenchman Jaimee Floyd Angele in his first competitive outing since injuring his knee in an on-court fall at last month's Madrid Masters.

Akira Santallan, Marc Polmans, Alex Bolt and Jason Kubler have also entered the gruelling qualifying process as they attempt to join Kyrgios, John Millman, Matt Ebden, Jordan Thompson and teenage wildcard Alex de Minaur in the 128-man main draw.

Isabelle Wallace, meanwhile, will make her grand slam debut at Roland Garros after winning Australia's women's wildcard playoff in Paris.

The Spain-based 21-year-old rallied past Olivia Rogowska 6-1, 5-7, 6-3 in Sunday's play-off final to join Ashleigh Barty, Daria Gavrilova, Samantha Stosur and Ajla Tomljanovic in the women's main draw.

Ranked 249th in the world, Wallace's only previous grand slam attempt ended in a first-round qualifying loss at the Australian Open in January.

While Wallace can prepare for the biggest match of her life, and biggest pay cheque of her career, Rogowska will now join fellow Australians Arina Rodionova, Lizette Cabrera and Priscilla Hon in the qualifying event getting underway on Monday.

Barty, who has been seeded 17th, Gavrilova the 24th seed, and 2010 French Open runner-up and four-time semi-finalist Samantha Stosur will finalise their preparations in Strasbourg this week.

Barty is top seed in Strasbourg, where Stosur defends her title after beating Gavrilova in last year's final.

Stosur and Gavrilova could clash in the second round this year if they win their respective openers on Monday night.

Second-seeded Gavrilova faces American Jennifer Brady, Stosur meets Sofia Kenin, also of the US, and Barty plays Thai Luksika Kumkhum, a lucky loser from qualifying.

AAP

Comments disabled

Morning & Afternoon Newsletter

Delivered Mon–Fri.

Related Articles

Back to top button