A temporary suspension and a case inevitably destined to cause discussion. The International Tennis Integrity Agency (Itia) arrested Nick Kyrgios as part of the Tennis Anti-Doping Program after a test carried out last June revealed the presence of a prohibited substance.
The Australian tennis player, 31, had provided a sample on June 22, 2026, during an ATP 250 tournament held in Mallorca, Spain. The following July 17, analyzes carried out by a laboratory accredited by Wada highlighted the presence of benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine.
The substance is included in the Wada list of those prohibited during competitions. For this reason, the mandatory provisional suspension was triggered, which came into force on 4 August 2026.
Kyrgios apologizes
With a post on Instagram, Kyrgios acknowledged that he had made “a huge mistake”. «I apologize to my fans, my family, my sponsors and all my loved ones. But above all, I apologize to the children who follow me. I know what kind of example this sets and I am deeply disappointed in myself”, added the Wimbledon 2022 finalist. The numerous injuries have “significantly affected him both physically and mentally” in recent years, causing him to fall from 13th to 919th place in the ATP ranking. «Accepting the idea that I was nearing the end of my career was harder than I ever imagined. I’m sorry”, even if “none of this justifies what I did”, he concluded.
The attacks on Sinner for the Clostebol case
Thus, while Sinner has yet to lift his reservation on his presence at the US Open, the Australian stumbles upon an affair that smacks of retaliation. When the blue player had agreed with Wada on a three-month ban – from February to May 2025 – for the negligent contamination by Clostebol, Kyrgios had spoken of “a bad day for tennis”.
Career between victories and injuries
Returning to the court before the summer after several months of absence due to wrist and knee problems, he was one of the few to have achieved victories on the professional circuit against the “Big Four”: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. But he also experienced a career plagued by serious injuries – to the right elbow, left wrist, hip, knees, shoulders and collarbone – which forced him to undergo numerous surgeries, the most important of which was reconstruction complete right wrist in 2024. In 2022, in a message published on Instagram, Kyrgios even revealed that he had had “suicidal thoughts”.
In addition to injuries, his activity was often marked by behavioral problems. His inappropriate comments directed at the crowd, the referee or his opponents and his unsportsmanlike attitude have cost him numerous fines, including one of $113,000 in Cincinnati in 2019, suspensions and even the obligation to consult a psychologist.