{"id":53394,"date":"2026-08-19T12:08:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T12:08:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/53394\/"},"modified":"2026-08-19T12:08:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T12:08:08","slug":"nick-kyrgios-cocain-suspension-what-we-know-about-tennis-stars-ban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/53394\/","title":{"rendered":"Nick Kyrgios cocain suspension: What we know about tennis star’s ban"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nick Kyrgios, one of the \u201cbad boys\u201d of tennis<\/a>, has been suspended after testing positive during an in-competition drug test for cocaine. The positive drug test came aat an ATP 250 tournament in Mallorca back in June.<\/p>\n

According to tennis reporter Ben Rothenberg, Kyrgios\u2019 provisional suspension began on August 4, and Kyrgios has yet to appeal.<\/p>\n

After a lengthy statement posted to social media, it appears unlikely that Kyrgios will choose to do so. <\/p>\n

Kyrgios apologized to his family and fans while taking ownership for his mistake, but also acknowledged some mental health struggles and said he will be stepping away from \u201cpublic life\u201d<\/a> in order to get himself better. <\/p>\n

MORE: Amanda Anisimova confused announcers with mystery drink during comeback win<\/a><\/p>\n

Nick Kyrgios Issues Apology<\/p>\n

\"Tennis:Mar 6, 2025; Indian Wells, CA, USA; Nick Kyrgios (AUS) retires due to a wrist injury in his match against Botic van de Zandschulp (NED) in the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Well Tennis Garden. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect (Reuters)<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry to my fans, my family, my sponsors, and everyone close to me,\u201d Kyrgios wrote. \u201cAbove all, I\u2019m sorry to the kids who follow me. I know the example this sets and I\u2019m deeply disappointed in myself. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to make excuses, but I do want to give some context about where I\u2019ve been. The last couple of years of injuries have taken a huge toll on me, both physically and mentally. My body hasn\u2019t been able to do what my mind expects it to do, and coming to terms with being near the end of career has been harder than I ever imagined.\u201d<\/p>\n

MORE: Nike releases basketball-inspired 2026 US Open kits for Alexandra Eala, Carlos Alcaraz<\/a><\/p>\n

Kyrgios then acknowledged he will be stepping away for nearly a month to focus on his well-being, and hopes people are mindful of his privacy during that time.<\/p>\n

\"Tennis:Aug 29, 2022; Flushing, NY, USA; Nick Kyrgios of Australia enters to play Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia on day one of the 2022 U.S. Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports Credit: USA TODAY Sports (Reuters)<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always said I didn\u2019t choose tennis, tennis chose me. But letting go of something that has been my whole life is one of the hardest things I\u2019ve ever had to face. At times I\u2019ve felt helpless and alone. None of that excuses what I did. However, the good news is that this has given me a wake up call. For the next 28 days, I\u2019ll be stepping away from social media and public life while I focus on getting myself right.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d ask that people respect my privacy during that time, and most importantly the privacy of my family. I\u2019m sorry. I\u2019ll do the work and come back better.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is great to see Kyrgios taking accountability for his mistake, and hopefully he is truly able to get the help he is seeking. <\/p>\n

If you or someone you know is struggling,\u00a0SAMHSA\u2019s National Helpline (1-800-662-HELP (4357))<\/a>\u00a0is a free, confidential, 24\/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service for those facing mental and\/or substance use disorders.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Enjoy free coverage of the top news & trending stories with The Big Lead Newsletter <\/a>\u2014<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nick Kyrgios, one of the \u201cbad boys\u201d of tennis, has been suspended after testing positive during an in-competition…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":53395,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[283,10226,723,1210,28],"class_list":["post-53394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-atp","tag-drugs","tag-featured","tag-nick-kyrgios","tag-tennis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}