Nick Kyrgios won’t face Novak Djokovic at the BNP Paribas Open after all.
Kyrgios retired from his first round match with Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands, due to injury, on Thursday night. Kyrgios was trailing 7-6, 3-0 when he stopped the match.
Instead it will be van de Zandschulp, who has already stunned Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz in his career, who will get a chance to upset Djokovic at Indian Wells. He will meet the five-time BNP Paribas Open champ in the second round on Saturday.
“Always hard to see someone walk off the court like that,” van de Zandschulp said. “Especially Nick.”
Kyrgios was making his sixth Indian Wells appearance and aiming for his first tour-level win since 2022 Tokyo. The 29-year-old, who held a set point in the opening-set tie-break, left the court visibly frustrated. He played with athletic tape wrapped around his right wrist, often flexing that area and grimacing in pain.
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A two-time quarterfinalist in Indian Wells, Kyrgios underwent wrist surgery in September 2023.
“I wasn’t too confident that I was going to be able to play today, to be honest,” Kyrgios said. “Two days ago in practice I had to stop my practice because I felt pain in my wrist. I felt like it was okay to take the court. Just, yeah, got progressively worse. But, yeah, started feeling sharp pain in my wrist.
“I thought the level was good. Played some really good tennis, and it was entertaining first set, could have easily took that first set.”
Van de Zandschulp, who ranks 85th in the world, lost in qualifiers Tuesday at the BNP Paribas Open, against Matteo Gigante, but found his way into the main draw as a lucky loser. Now, he’ll face the 24-time Grand Slam champion.
The 29-year-old beat Nadal in the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup Finals last year, and topped Alcaraz in the quarterfinals of last year’s U.S. Open. He’s no stranger to the spotlight.
The only time he’s faced Djokovic was in the 2022 Almaty Open. Djokovic won in straight sets.
“Hopefully next time’s going to be better,” Van de Zandschulp said Thursday.
Andrew John covers the BNP Paribas Open for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at [email protected].
