Kokkinakis and Thompson land Sydney wildcards
Thanasi Kokkinakis will make his long-awaited return to singles with in form Jordan Thompson
Thanasi Kokkinakis will make his long-awaited return to singles action next week after being awarded a wildcard, alongside local Jordan Thompson, into the Sydney International.
The 20-year-old has had a torrid run of injuries and played just one competitive tennis match in 2016 at the Rio Olympics.
Over at the Brisbane International this week he has teamed up with Thompson in the doubles to great effect. They beat Stan Wawrinka and Lucas Pouille in the first round, before toppling top seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut on a match tie-break to make the semi-finals.
Kokkinakis, who reached a career high world No.69 in June 2015, is relishing his return to singles action: “It’s no secret last year was a tough one for me but it felt great to get back out on court in Brisbane and I’m feeling fit and ready to go in Sydney.
“I’m very grateful for the opportunity I’ve been given with the wildcard and I’m looking forward to getting to Sydney and playing in front of the Aussie fans.”
Thompson, who grew up on the Olympic Park courts as a member of the Tennis Australia National Academy, will make his second straight appearance in the Sydney main draw after reaching the second round in 2016.
He enjoyed a career best win during this week’s Brisbane International, downing former world No.3 David Ferrer to lock in a quarter-final match-up with Japan’s Kei Nishikori.
“I feel like I’ve been playing some of my best tennis this past year and I’m excited to get out and play in front of all my friends, family and the Sydney crowd next week,” Thompson said.