Nick Kyrgios is one of the most polarising figures in world sport.

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You either love him or loathe him, there’s nothing in between.

The star Aussie made his long-awaited return to tennis at the Australian Open on Monday night but was no match for Brit Jacob Fearnley, going down in straight sets in front of a packed John Cain Arena.

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And now after a two-year lay-off, Kyrgios might have hit his last ball in the singles competition at Melbourne Park.

“He was so diminished from what he once was,” TV presenter Catherine Whitaker said on The Tennis Podcast.

“He did not look like a professional tennis player to me tonight.

“I would say it was humbling for Nick Kyrgios, but I don’t think there is anything that could humble the ego of Nick Kyrgios.”

Co-host David Law added: “You can’t just come out in the shape he was in and play against a guy like that and expect to win.”

Tennis365’s Kevin Palmer was also scathing in the aftermath of the loss, labelling Kyrgios as “one of the great underachievers”.

“The harsh reality Kyrgios will have to accept as he prepares to join the ranks of former tennis players is he will go down as one of the great underachievers in the history of the sport,” Palmer wrote.

“Mentally and emotionally, Kyrgios was a third-rate performer who didn’t belong in the top 1000 of the ATP Rankings and while his talents allowed him to occasionally punch his way through big matches, those moments were few and far between.”

But how do you measure success? Does success only come in the form of on-court victories?

Kyrgios divides fans, but despite what you might think of him, he draws people to the sport.

He is the greatest entertainer in world tennis. Sure, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are young guns who may in time become greats, while Novak Djokovic has won a mind-boggling 24 grand slams. Aryna Sabalenka is also at the top of her game and Coco Gauff is a star on the rise. But put simply, people who otherwise could not care less for tennis tune in when Kyrgios is on court.

“Seeing Kyrgios in action again at his favourite stadium in the world was like seeing that old friend after years,” ABC’s Chris De Silva wrote.

“When you see those old friends, the real ones, the same old jokes are timeless, and the length of time you’ve spent apart seems to disappear almost instantly.

“Kyrgios has captivated us and frustrated us, sometimes all at once, since bursting onto the scene in 2014.”

There’s no atmosphere quite like John Cain Arena when Kyrgios is running rampant. The stadium becomes almost zoo-like, with plenty of fans decked out in green and gold to throw their support behind Kyrgios. It’s loud, like really loud.

Fans queued for up to five hours to secure seats into the Arena to watch Kyrgios. Those who bought a ground pass ticket chose to spend most of their day waiting in line, rather than take in some quality matches on the array of outside courts.

Kyrgios is box office, whether you like him or not. The way he goes about things is different, but that’s what makes him so interesting.

He doesn’t grind away at points like Lleyton Hewitt or Alex De Minaur have, that determination and spirit which has become synonymous for Australians.

But he’s an entertainer. You tune into a Kyrgios match for the same reason you do when Glenn Maxwell is playing cricket. It’s addictive and you never know what you’re going to get.

There’s no doubt a sense of ‘what if’ surrounding Kyrgios career, but one thing is for sure, he is one of tennis’ greatest ever showmen.