King Kyrgios makes Aus Open return alongside 11 Aussies for day two

Twelve Australians will hit the courts today for day two of the Australian Open at Melbourne Park, including Nick Kyrgios, who makes his Grand Slam return tonight.

Kyrgios’ long-awaited return is after two years of being sidelined with abdominal strain and knee, foot and wrist problems.

Kyrgios says he’s still confident in his performance.

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“People are always going to say, ‘Be realistic, you’re not going to be the same’. I unfortunately don’t have that mindset. I always have utmost confidence in my ability,” said Kyrgios in his pre-tournament press conference.

“If I’m playing my style of tennis, my unpredictability, I have a chance against anyone.”

Day two of the Australian Open promises a packed schedule, with 12 Australian players including Kyrgios set to play across several courts. 

On Court 3, Talia Gibson will face Zeynep Sönmez from 11am, followed by James Duckworth taking on Dominic Stricker. 

The day will conclude on this court with a match between Destanee Aiava, a qualifier, and Greet Minnen.  

Over on Margaret Court Arena, Ajla Tomljanović will begin her campaign against Ashlyn Krueger at 11:30am. 

She will be followed by Jordan Thompson, seeded 27th, who will face Dominik Koepfer, a qualifier.  

On John Cain Arena, Jessica Pegula, the seventh seed, will compete against Maya Joint at 4pm.

Kia Arena will see Thanasi Kokkinakis play Roman Safiullin in the third match of the day, followed by a contest between Tommy Paul, the 12th seed, and Christopher O’Connell. 

Extra matches are being played after yesterday’s downpour, but Tennis Australia CEO and Australian Open Director Craig Tiley told 9News the rain didn’t stop crowds.

“Even with the rain, we had more than 81,000 people through the gate which is just short of the record but that was a record when we had sun shining all day. So we know that there’s an unbelievable demand for fans to come through the gate,” Tiley said.

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