Nick Kyrgios has praised Novak Djokovic and called him “a bit of a god” after his defeat in the Wimbledon final. He now wants a “vacation” after two big weeks.
The top seed and defending champion fended off a typically feisty Kyrgios in the final, 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6(3), to claim his seventh Wimbledon crown and 21st Grand Slam title.
In an explosive, heated and tense battle, Djokovic simply had too much for Kyrgios when it really mattered, and after a very challenging year so far, the Serb was able to add another Wimbledon title to his collection, moving one behind Roger Federer, and close the gap to one Grand Slam behind his other great rival, Rafael Nadal.
“He [Djokovic] is a bit of a god, I’m not going to lie,” Kyrgios said with a smile in his post-match speech.
“I thought I played well, but first of all, congratulations to Novak and your team. I don’t know how many times now.
“Obviously, thanks to all the ball kids, umpires – I know me and you have a tough relationship, but I thought I’d thank you for putting up with it, and the crowd, it’s been an amazing couple of weeks for me personally.”
When asked if he was hungry for more, he joked: “Absolutely not, I’m so tired, honestly.
“Myself and my team, I think we are all exhausted. We have played so much tennis. I definitely need a well-earned vacation after this one.
“I’m just really happy with this result, it’s the best in my career – so hopefully I can be here again, but I don’t know about that.”
Kyrgios could not have given more in his first Grand Slam singles final, but on the day he was not able to deny his legendary opponent.
Later in his press conference, he said he was “two beers deep” and felt very good with the pressure and expectation he was feeling having finally been lifted.
“I was obviously super excited to be here and I had some high hopes, but I’ve never felt, to be honest, good,” he said.
“I just felt so much pressure. There’s so much anxiety, pressure to do things or achieve things.
“If I don’t do well, like it’s just so much. So I feel unbelievable. Like, I’m two beers deep!”
