‘He is a legit contender’ – Nick Kyrgios backed to make a ‘big run’ at Wimbledon by Thanasi Kokkinakis

Thanasi Kokkinakis believes his doubles partner Nick Kyrgios has a real chance of winning Wimbledon this summer.

Should No. 45 seed Kyrgios beat Brit Paul Jubb in the first round, he could face Croatian 26th seed Filip Krajinovic in the second and then Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third. The 27-year-old could not meet Rafael Nadal until the semi-finals or defending champion Novak Djokovic until the final.

Djokovic is the heavy favourite to win at SW19 for a fourth time in a row, but Kokkinakis believes Kyrgios can go far this year.

“He’s a legit contender,” Kokkinakis said.

“He looks great. He looks like he’s locked in. I had a look at his draw and I really like it for him. Obviously, Slams are tough but with his game and how comfortable he is on grass and how many matches he’s played, I think he can definitely make a big run here. I’m pretty confident in that.

“There are a lot of good players out there, especially it being over five sets. There’s a lot of things that can happen over five sets.

“It’s tough to put people away in straight sets and the hardest thing is backing up matches after matches.

“But the key thing for him is if he can get it done fairly comfortably, especially in his earlier rounds, I think that sets him up really well.”

“He’s said he’s the best player on grass in the world, so the best outcome would be for him to win it … yeah, just quoting him,” Millman said on Friday.

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