Nick Kyrgios has named Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as the one retired player that he would love to play again.
Tsonga retired from playing tennis in 2022 at the age of 37, ending his fantastic career with 18 ATP Tour titles.
Meanwhile, Kyrgios is still playing professionally, although injuries and a lack of matches have combined to force him down the ATP rankings.
The 30-year-old, who is now world number 746, most recently played doubles and mixed doubles at the 2026 Australian Open.
Nick Kyrgios would love to play his ‘idol’ Jo-Wilfried Tsonga again
Kyrgios has now conducted a Q&A on his Instagram story, with one fan asking him which retired player he would like to play again.
He responded with an image of himself embracing Tsonga, accompanied by the simple caption: “My idol”.
Kyrgios also answered a question about his favorite tournament to play outside of the four Grand Slam tournaments.
He responded: “Washington, Miami (Crandon Park)”.
Nick Kyrgios and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat each other once
Kyrgios did manage to play his idol Tsonga twice before his retirement, at Marseille in 2017 and a year later at the Australian Open.
They recorded one win each, with the Frenchman fittingly winning on home soil before the Australian did the same.
Intriguingly, there is a big similarity between the two, with Kyrgios and Tsonga having each lost a Grand Slam final.
Moreover, both lost out to Novak Djokovic, at Wimbledon in 2022 and the 2008 Australian Open respectively.
Upon his retirement, an emotional Tsonga said: “Today is a big day. A day that I say goodbye. I’d like to thank everyone that has come with me on this adventure.
“I had the luck and the opportunity to do all of this. It’s been amazing to be part of a wonderful generation of French players.”
A handful of French players are now looking to follow in his fantastic footsteps, including the talented Arthur Fils.
He is, however, ranked outside the ATP top 40, but his compatriots Arthur Rinderknech, Corentin Moutet and Ugo Humbert are all within that bracket.
READ MORE: Jim Courier explains why he walked away from elite tennis far earlier than expected
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