Estoril (Portugal) (AFP) – The patchy star power of unpredictable Nick Kyrgios may be required to add some spark to the hard-luck Estoril Open which begins on Monday after a late injury pullout from Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
The French headliner at the ATP 250 event which underwent a dramatic organisational clean sweep prior to the 2015 edition, withdrew with a knee injury – not an uncommon complaint for the world number seven.
“During the match against Roger, I felt something in my knee,” Tsonga said in Monte Carlo last week. “Thanks to the medical service, I was feeling good and was able to play.”
With defending champion Richard Gasquet of France also missing with fitness problems, 20th-ranked Australian Kyrgios will be under pressure to at least duplicate his performance of a year ago when he lost the clay final to Gasquet at Portugal’s only ATP event.
Local officials were also hugely disappointed when tournament director Joao Zilhao failed to lure Roger Federer into the field after the Swiss lost to Tsonga in the quarter-finals of Monte Carlo, his first tournament back after February knee surgery.
The 34-year-old Federer made it clear at the time that he would not be participating in any small events this spring – he won Istanbul a year ago after pocketing a huge financial guarantee and claimed the Estoril title in 2008 under similar circumstances.
Federer has yet to even decide if he will play the Madrid and Rome Masters events next month prior to Roland Garros. Officials also tried to sign Canadian Milos Raonic, who declined due to his ongoing adductor injury.
Kyrgios, meanwhile has been laying low at home in Canberra before travelling to Europe, after last playing almost a month ago when he lost a semi-final in Miami to Kei Nishikori.
The Aussie has said only that he is “looking forward” to playing in Estoril.
Kyrgios will begin in the second round after a bye against the winner from Spaniards Inigo Cervantes and Daniel Munoz de la Nava.
A good week on court as he begins his delayed pre-French Open campaign late would also help Kyrgios put some distance between himself and rival Bernard Tomic, one place behind on 21st in the rankings.
Kyrgios will come to Portugal with his first ATP title in hand after winning Marseille in February.
But his at-times controversial on-court demeanour and his ability to focus on a match will remain the huge question marks of the week.
With Tsonga out, France’s Gilles Simon takes the top seeding, ahead of Kyrgios, Barcelona semi-finalist Benoit Paire, Portugal’s Joao Sousa, Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and Croatian teenager Borna Coric, a 2015 quarter-finalist seeded sixth.
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