Former Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios has been provisionally suspended from professional tennis after testing positive for cocaine, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed.

In 2021, Kyrgios was accused of assaulting his girlfriend.

Timeline of the Case

The positive sample was collected on June 22, 2026, during a lower-tier grass court event in Mallorca, Spain, where Kyrgios was competing while ranked 919th in the world. The result was confirmed positive on July 17, and the ITIA applied a provisional suspension on August 4. The case became public on Tuesday.

A Career Already in Decline

Kyrgios, 31, has struggled significantly since his standout 2022 season, when he reached the Wimbledon final. He has won just 2 of his last 10 ATP singles matches, a steep fall from his peak form. The positive test adds another setback to a career already defined by injuries and inconsistent results in recent years.

What Comes Next

Kyrgios faces a potential suspension of up to four years under anti-doping rules, though a lighter sanction is expected because the ITIA determined the cocaine use occurred outside of competition. A comparable case offers some precedent: British player Dan Evans received a one-year ban in a similar 2017 case involving cocaine.

Kyrgios Responds

Kyrgios did not dispute the finding and publicly took ownership of the situation. “I made a huge mistake and take full responsibility for it,” he said. He connected the episode to a difficult personal stretch, describing feelings of being “helpless and alone” amid ongoing injury struggles, and announced he would step away from social media for 28 days to focus on his recovery.

Why It Matters

The suspension marks one of the most significant off-court controversies of Kyrgios’s career, arriving at a moment when he was already fighting to regain his footing on tour. How the ITIA ultimately rules on sanctions will determine whether Kyrgios has a realistic path back to competitive tennis or faces an extended period on the sidelines.

Nick Kyrgios showcased to the fans the “Nick Kyrgios Effect” against his opponent Dominic Thiem. From the underarm that won him the second set to the between-the-legs miss that conceded the third set, Kyrgios was having the time of his life after taking an early two-set lead over his opponent.

The 25-year-old Australian was egging the crowd on while he was winning, but soon, the vibe in the stadium changed.

Kyrgios was going up against the second-seeded Theim on Friday. Theim is the current U.S. Open champion and last year’s Australian Open runner up. In September, at the Meadows field, the Austrian made history by becoming the first man in 71 years to come back to win the final after dropping the first two sets.

So it was no surprise that after being down two sets, the Austrian-born Theim began a comeback. The comeback forced a five-setter, which became Kyrgios’ second consecutive five-setter at the 10,500-capacity John Cain Arena. The 25-year-old’s previous five-set match was against Ugo Humbert. Kyrgios erased two match points to eliminate Humbert.

Today, it was Kyrgios’ time to lose. Theim’s comeback proved too much for the 25-year-old as he lost and was eliminated from the tournament. For the Austrian, it is a step closer to reaching the finals again.

After the match, Theim said of the fans in attendance, “This was a good last match before the lockdown.” This was said because the state government imposed a five-day lockdown due to an uptick in coronavirus cases. Theim will be preparing for his next match against Grigor Dimitrov. The match will be played with no audience.

Nick Kyrgios and Rafael Nadal both secured third-round victories in Melbourne on Friday to reach the 2018 Australian Open quarterfinals.

Australian Open Round Three Highlights news

Kyrgios won three tiebreaks in a close, four-set match against 32-year-old Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to earn a 7-6(5) 4-6 7-6(6) 7-6(5) victory in 3 hours, 17 minutes.

The 22-year-old Australian (the No. 17 seed) said the 15th-seeded Tsonga was one of his idols growing up.

“Playing Jo I was obviously very nervous,” said Kyrgios, whose win on Friday was his first at Rod Laver Arena. “He was a guy that I looked up to as a kid. I still do. He is a champion of the game. I am happy to get through.”

Kyrgios will next face Bulgarian third-seed Grigor Dimitrov.


The match between the pair was not devoid of tense incidents and general misbehavior, however. Kyrgios received a code violation before the match even began for not being prepared in time. Then, Tsonga had an outburst in the fourth set.

Tsonga began arguing with chair umpire Jake Garner after the first game of the fourth set.

The Frenchman was speaking in his native tongue, and reportedly said, “bring him here, he needs to come down here”.

This prompted Garner to repeatedly tell Tsonga “you have to stop, you have to stop. Nothing good can come from it. You have to stop” before handing down a code violation.

“Because on the set point, in between the first serve and the second, the guy was talking to me and telling me, ‘You are under pressure now, you are under pressure now,’ when I was bouncing my balls,” Tsonga said.

“That’s it. I lost it and I drive a little bit crazy. It’s not fair. It’s not fair.”

Tsonga added that he believed the fan simply felt “safe” and spoke that way because he was high up in the stands.

Among the celebrities who attended the match was actor Will Smith, who was treated to loud applause from fans when featured on the big screen. Music from the movie “Men in Black” also accompanied this moment once or twice.

Kyrgios confessed he was starstruck upon seeing Smith in the crowd.

Meanwhile, Nadal handily routed 28th-seeded Bosnian Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 on Friday. The 31-year-old top-seeded Spaniard will play 24th-seeded Argentine Diego Schwartzman in the quarterfinals on Saturday.

Nadal is now fourth in the Open Era in terms of most majors won (17) while conceding no more than five games to an opponent.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 18: Nick Kyrgios of Australia serves in his second round match against Andreas Seppi of Italy on day three of the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 18, 2017 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Nick Kyrgios, the hot-headed and uber-talented 22-year-old tennis player, had another spectacular meltdown in the middle of a match on Wednesday in the first round of the U.S. Open.

Playing fellow Australian, John Millman, Kyrgios, who was ranked 14th, injured his shoulder, was penalized for cursing, and smashed his racket in a match that went 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 in Millman’s favor. As has been the case throughout his roller-coaster career, Kyrgios was uninterested in play once it seemed he was going to lose.

“There goes the racquet. Emphatically.” #kyrgios #usopen pic.twitter.com/ST214T2zOA

— Lynn Bee ? (@lynnlovestennis) August 30, 2017

Kyrgios has become a fascination of the tennis world’s because of his temper and his infinite talent. Many, including Kyrgios, seem too believe that because of his personality, he is wasting the gift he has spent most of his life refining.

When asked after the match on Wednesday whether or not he wants his coach, Sebastien Grosjean, to continue coaching him, Kyrgios said, “I don’t know, honestly. I’m not good enough for him.”

He continued, “You know, he’s very dedicated. He’s an unbelievable coach. you know, he probably deserves a player that is probably more dedicated to the game than I am. He deserves better than me.”

“I’m not dedicated to the game at all,” he later told reporters. He also added, “I keep letting people down.”

Kyrgios and Millman seemed poised for a competitive match after the second set yesterday but by the third, Kyrgios began rubbing his shoulder, an indication that the injury that his plagued him through out the year was back. He then asked the ball boy to help him stretch the injury out. Shortly after, he was heard cursing and was given a code violation by the chair umpire, who he promptly began to argue with.

By the end of the match, he appeared to be hitting the ball out of bounds so as to end the match as soon as possible.

Kyrgios eliminated himself from Wimbledon earlier this year, when a hip injury prevented him from playing his best.

“I’ve had a diabolical year at these Slams,” he said after the match on Wednesday. “It doesn’t surprise me. It’s just the story of my career, really. I will have good weeks, I’ll have bad weeks. It’s just a roller-coaster.”

The win against Kyrgios on Wednesday is the first ever U.S. Open victory of Millman’s career. Millman is currently ranked 235th world-wide.

Australian Nick Kyrgios upset World No. 2 Novak Djokovic for the second time in two weeks with a 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) victory at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Wednesday.

Nick Kyrgios Upsets Novak Djokovic at BNP Paribas Open, Federer Beats nadal

Kyrigos, 21, also defeated Djokovic at the Mexican Open in Acapulco 12 days earlier, and will next face Roger Federer in the quarter-finals.

Federer claimed his third straight win over longtime rival Rafael Nadal, winning 6-2, 6-3.

“I did very well today, I’m so pleased I’m able to step into the court and play super aggressive,” said Federer, who beat Nadal in just 68 minutes. “Coming over the backhand has been part of that.”

“It’s a nice feeling to win the last three. I can tell you that,” added the Swiss, a four-time Indian Wells champion. “But most importantly, I won Australia. That was big for me.

“For me, it was all about coming out and trying to play the way I did in Australia. I didn’t think it was going to be that possible, to be quite honest, because the court is more jumpy here so it’s hard to put the ball away.”

Kyrgios, meanwhile, said he felt confident in what his goal was coming into his match against Djokovic, whom he praised.

“It feels good. I knew what I had to do today,” Kyrgios said. “It was always going to be tough – he is a great champion.”

The Australian— who was suspended and fined earlier this year due to lack of efforts in previous matches— recorded 25 aces against 12-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic in Mexico, and got 14 in California on Wednesday. Kyrgios also hit 25 winners past his Serbian opponent, who was incapable of attaining a single break point chance against the World No. 16. Kyrgios crashed out of the Australian Open in January after losing to Italian Andreas Seppi in the second round.

Djokovic, who has won the BNP Paris Open three consecutive years, had previously been undefeated in 20 matches at Indian Wells.

“The run was amazing,” Djokovic said. “It had to end at some stage. Unfortunately, it was today.”

Also on Wednesday at Indian Wells, Japanese fourth-seed Kei Nishikori beat American Donald Young 6-2, 6-4, while No. 21-seed Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta and Argentine 27th seed Pablo Cuevas also advanced to the quarter-finals.

American 17th seed Jack Sock fought past Tunisia’s Malek Jaziri 4-6 7-6 (7-1) 7-5.

Finally, Austrian eighth seed Dominic Thiem defeated France’s Gael Monfils 6-3, 6-2. Thiem will now face Swiss Stan Wawrinka, a three-time grand slam champion who saw off world No. 70 Yoshihito Nishioka of Japan 3-6 6-3 7-6 after two hours and 13 minutes of play.

On the women’s side, eighth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova swept past fellow Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-3, 6-2 to reach the women’s semifinals. Kuznetsova will next face Czech third seed Karolina Pliskova, who beat out Spaniard Garbine Muguruza, the 2016 French Open Champion, 7-6, 7-6.

Denmark’s No. 13-seed Caroline Wozniacki beat ninth-seeded American Madison Keys 6-4, 6-4. Wozniacki will now face 28th-seeded Frenchwoman Kristina Mladenovic in Thursday’s quarterfinal.

No. 12 Venus Williams and 14th-seeded Russian Elena Vesnina in Thursday’s other quarter-final.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 18: Nick Kyrgios of Australia serves in his second round match against Andreas Seppi of Italy on day three of the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 18, 2017 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Nick Kyrgios made quite the unforgettable exit from the Australian Open on Wednesday, and not for losing with dignity.

Nick Kyrgios Has Meltdown, Crashes Out Of Australian Open After Loss To Andreas Seppi

The 21-year-old Australian squandered a two-set lead to fall 1-6, 6-7 (1-7), 6-4, 6-1, 10-8 to Italian Andreas Seppi after engaging in a heated verbal skirmish with his courtside box.

Kyrgios– who was still recovering from a knee injury heading into the season’s first Grand Slam– seemed irked about having to put in more extra effort.

The 14th seed had been dominating the match before he suffered a meltdown midway through the contest. One announcer called Kyrgios’ performance “melancholy madness.”

Kyrigos was just two games from securing a spot in the third round at 4-4 in the third set when, after repeatedly arguing with his entourage, he began to fall apart.

The Australian was docked a penalty point after receiving a second code violation for violently smashing his racket on the court in the subsequent changeover, before Seppi served out the set to begin taking control of the match.

He dropped serve twice more as Seppi dashed through the fourth set to force a decider– two years after Kyrgios denied the Italian 8-6 in the fifth set on the same court at Melbourne Park.

Former world No. 1 American Jim Courier described Kyrgios’ behavior as “apathetic.”

“He seems to be making a specific point to someone in his team that they messed up,” Courier said. “At one point, does he re-engage?”

Kyrgios earned a match point in the 17th game of the wild final set, although Seppi fired a vicious forehand winner down the line to stay alive before breaking Kyrigos and finally closing the contest after three hours and nine minutes.

“I just kept fighting,” Seppi said. “Maybe it was meant to be.”

Seppi next faces world No. 71 Steve Darcis of Belgium on Friday, with a probable fourth-round showdown with triple Grand Slam champion and reigning US Open winner Stan Wawrinka coming soon afterwards.

On the women’s side, world No. 1 Angelique Kerber of Germany got to celebrate her 29th birthday by defeating countrywoman Carina Witthoeft 6-2, 6-7 (3), 6-2.

Several Americans, including John Isner, Steve Johnson and Shelby Rogers, all crashed out Wednesday.

American Sam Querrey, however, remains alive, and will next face world No. 1 Andy Murray in the third round.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 18: Nick Kyrgios of Australia serves in his second round match against Andreas Seppi of Italy on day three of the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 18, 2017 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Nick Kyrgios will miss the rest of the season after being suspended by the men’s tour and fined an additional $25,000 by the Association of Tennis Professionals for ”tanking” a match and insulting fans.

ATP Suspends Nick Kyrgios For 8 Weeks, Fines Additional $25,000 For Tanking

The ATP said the hot-tempered, 21-year-old Australian was sanctioned for “conduct contrary to the integrity of the game” following an investigation into his behavior during a second-round loss to German qualifier Mischa Zverev last week at the Shanghai Masters, behavior that resulted in an initial $16,500 fine for “lack of best efforts,” unsportsmanlike conduct, and verbal abuse of a spectator.

Kyrgios displayed little effort during his 6-3, 6-1 defeat against Zverev, even patting easy serves over the net and walking away before his opponent’s serve had crossed the net.

The ATP added Monday that, in addition to the fine, Kyrgios will serve an eight-week suspension lasting through Jan. 15– just one day before the start of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of 2017.

However, the tour also said the suspension will be reduced to three weeks if the Australian agrees to enter “a plan of care under the direction of a sports psychologist or an equivalent plan approved by the ATP.” This would make him eligible to return on Nov. 7.

There are no regular tournaments scheduled for after Nov. 7. The only event in November is the ATP finals in London from Nov. 13-20. The 12th-ranked Kyrgrios has not qualified for the eight-player finals, so he will need to wait until next year in any case to return to the tour.

Kyrgios released a statement Monday offering another apology for his conduct in Shanghai, and saying he will return next year. He did not state whether he would enter the treatment program mandated by the ATP.

”I regret that my year is ending this way and that I will not have a chance to continue chasing the ATP finals,” Kyrgios said. ”This was an important goal for me. I do understand and respect the decision by the ATP and I will use this time off to improve on and off the court. I am truly sorry and look forward to returning in 2017.”

During the match in Shanghai where he had his outburst, Kyrgios was warned by the chair umpire about his behavior as a professional and jeered and booed by the crowd. This led the Australian to angrily retort to a fan’s taunts by yelling, ”You want to come here and play?”

In a post-match interview, Kyrgios said he didn’t care about the crowd reaction because he didn’t owe them anything. It was a day after his opening win, when he said he was tired and bored and didn’t really get time to savor his title-winning run in Tokyo over the weekend.

Kyrgios tweeted an apology following the loss: ”Not good enough today on many levels, I’m better than that. I can go on about excuses but there are none. Sorry (hash)StillAWorkInProgress.”

In the statement issued on his web site Monday, Kyrgios offered further contrition.

”The season has been a long one as I battled several injuries and other challenges towards the end of the summer,” he said. ”The Asian circuit was particularly tough after the long week and win in Tokyo and with the travel throughout the continent, my body finally just gave out in Shanghai both physically and mentally.

”This is no excuse, and I know very well that I need to apologize to the fans in Shanghai and in other parts of the world … I of course know how important the fans are to the success of our sport and I personally love the interaction with fans in the many different cities throughout the world on the tennis circuit.”

This is not the first time Kyrgios has been punished by tennis authorities due to misconduct.

In 2015, Kyrgios was banned for 28 days and fined $25,000 for making lewd remarks about Swiss great Stan Wawrinka’s girlfriend during a Rogers Cup match in Montreal.

He was also criticized for his displays at Wimbledon and the US Open, and withdrew from Rio 2016 following an argument with the Australian Olympic Committee.

SHANGHAI, CHINA – OCTOBER 12: Nick Kyrgios of Australia returns a shot against Mischa Zverev of Germany during the Men’s singles second round match on day four of Shanghai Rolex Masters at Qi Zhong Tennis Centre on October 12, 2016 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

Nick Kyrgios has been dealt a major blow by the Association of Tennis Professionals.

Nick Kyrgios Fined $16,500 For ‘Lack Of Best Efforts’ And Conduct At Shanghai Masters

The ATP fined the 21-year-old Australian $16,500 for his strange behavior during his second-round match defeat by Mischa Zverev at the Shanghai Masters on Wednesday.

Kyrgios was fined the maximum $10,000 for displaying a “lack of best efforts” during a match, $5,000 for verbal abuse of a spectator and $1,500 for unsportsmanlike conduct.

The 12th-seeded youngster rushed through his 6-3, 6-1 loss to German qualifier Zverev, failing to put speed on his serves and hitting erratically on his groundstrokes. At one point, Kyrgios walked toward his chair after floating a serve across the net without even waiting for Zverev’s return– a bizarre move that seems like the epitome of lack of trying.

Late in the match, Kyrgios also angrily responded to a fan who criticized him by yelling back, “You want to come here and play?”

He was booed and jeered multiple times.

Afterwards, Krygios claimed he was tired. “It was just tough. Obviously I played a lot of matches in a row. Physically tired, mentally tired,” he said

“That’s why I’m trying to work on being able to be consistent every week. Just took the easy way out tonight and obviously didn’t show up at all. I wasn’t so much frustrated. I just tapped out a little bit, I guess.”

The feisty Australian is known for his on-court antics and frequent arguments with umpires and fans. Last year, he even insulted the 2016 US Open champion, Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka, during a match in Montreal.

Kyrgios received $12,500 in fines for his behavior in that match, as well as a possible 28-day suspension and a further $25,000 fine if he picked up any other major offenses over the following six months. That probation period ended in February.

On Friday, top-ranked Serb Novak Djokovic said he believes the youngster has some “life lessons to learn.”

“Not many great things are spoken about him lately,” Djokovic said. “I’m sorry to hear that, because I share the opinion of many players and many people in the tennis world that he’s one of the greatest talents the game has seen lately.”

When asked about the confrontation with the spectator, Kyrgios stated: “I feel like if they knew what they were talking about they’d be on the tennis court and being successful as well. I can’t really understand it at all. They don’t know what I’m going through, so no, I don’t understand it.”

SHANGHAI, CHINA – OCTOBER 12: Nick Kyrgios of Australia returns a shot against Mischa Zverev of Germany during the Men’s singles second round match on day four of Shanghai Rolex Masters at Qi Zhong Tennis Centre on October 12, 2016 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has threatened to quit tennis so many times in the past that his announcements rarely seem to cause much of a stir amongst his fans any more.

Nick Kyrgios Says On Twitter He Will Quit Tennis If He Wins US Open

On Monday night, the 21-year-old surprised many when he called an impromptu, two-minute Q&A session with his fans on Twitter ahead of his US Open first-round match against Britain’s Aljaz Bedene on Wednesday morning.

Kyrgios has previously stated his desire to leave the sport before he turns 27, but on Monday, he responded to a fan by saying that if he won this year’s US Open — which began that same night in Flushing Meadows, New York — he would walk away for good.

“If I won the US Open now, u would never see me again,” he said. 

Kyrgios also revealed he is in love with Croatian-Australian girlfriend Ajla Tomljanovic — who is also a tennis player– and did not shirk a question on whether players are allowed to smoke marijuana on the professional tour.

Kyrgios was also featured in a front-page feature story in the New York Times magazine where he stated he is interested in quitting tennis to play basketball.

The No. 14-seed’s future thus remains as uncertain as ever.

He also appeared to have a laugh at Australian Olympic Committee Chef de Mission Kitty Chiller. 

Bedene, who is ranked 77th in the world, stated he is happy to let Kyrgios beat himself when they face off in the first round on Court 6.

When asked who he would pay money to watch play, Kyrgios tweeted “Monfils, me” making reference to world No.12 Gael Monfils of France.

Krygios’s previous best result at Flushing Meadows is the third round in 2014.

Undoubtedly one of the game’s most exciting young talents, Kyrgios is also known for his on-court antics and tempestuous personality.

He smashed three racquets in a row during a defeat in Cincinnati this month and after losing to Andy Murray at Wimbledon admitted to preparing for the match by playing video games.

Bedene, the Slovenian-born British No. 3, has never gone past the second round at Flushing Meadows but believes he can capitalise if Kyrgios begins to waver.

“The best players always take advantage,” Bedene said.

“You have to stay focused and you know those games and those points will come. You just have to grab them.

“It’s not easy because it gets quite entertaining. It’s funny. It gets interesting, as a player you want to enjoy the match. All those different emotions going through and then a player is playing tricks.

“It’s not easy to stay focused but you have to try to play the best you can.

“Either he can play great tennis or he can go down. He is his biggest enemy.”

Caption:MONTREAL, ON – AUGUST 11: Nick Kyrgios of Australia hits a return against Gael Monfils and teammate Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France during day two of the Rogers Cup at Uniprix Stadium on August 11, 2015 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)