BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — The new doubles team of Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios are out of the Brisbane International in the second round.
The pair, granted a wild-card entry by tournament organizers, lost 6-2, 3-6, 10-8 Wednesday to the top-seeded team of Nikola Mektic of Croatia and New Zealander Michael Venus.
A Djokovic double-fault with the duo leading 8-6 in the match tiebreak was key to the defeat as they lost the last four points of the match.
“Incredible,” Mektic told the sold-out crowd. “I was very happy when I saw them, I could play them on the first of January. It’s an amazing feeling to start the year like this and we knew there would be points like that against players like this.”
DJokovic and Kyrgios won their opening doubles match, a crowd-pleasing, fist-pumping affair by both players at Pat Rafter Arena.
Kyrgios lost his opening singles match on Tuesday after an 18-month absence from the tour due to injuries. Djokovic won his first singles match on the same day and will next play Gael Monfils, who he has a 19-0 record against.
___
AP tennis:
Former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya theorized Tuesday why Senate Democrats failed to break a filibuster and express support for keeping biological male
Murray and Djokovic enjoyed one of the sport’s fiercest rivalries, facing off in the finals of all four Grand Slam tournaments and playing for the world No. 1
MASON, OHIO - AUGUST 20: Carlos Alcaraz of Spain and Novak Djokovic of Serbia pose with their ... [+] trophies after the final of the Western & Southern Ope
The 2025 Merida Open Akron welcomed the emergence of several WTA players, with Australian Maya Joint and Colombian Emiliano Arango capturi