Kyrgios – curious mixture

‘‘I don’t really like the sport of tennis that much.’’ So says Nick Kyrgios, the 20-year-old Australian who represents the most exciting talent to have emerged from the junior ranks for years.

Kyrgios is riffing on his passion for basketball, which he loves to play with his two great pals: fellow Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis and young American firebrand Jack Sock. As he explains, he faced a career crossroads at the tender age of 14.

‘‘I was all for basketball and I made the decision to play tennis. I got pushed by my parents and to this day I can still say I don’t love the sport. If it’s NBA on one channel and a tennis tournament on the other, I’m watching NBA 100 per cent.’’

Everybody from John McEnroe to Mats Wilander agrees that Kyrgios could be a lifesaver for the sport in the post-Federer era.

Already, millions of fans have found a new hero in this bling-heavy wild child, who is as likely to sledge a random fan in the crowd as he is to hit a spectacular winner from between his legs.

On his last appearance at Wimbledon, Kyrgios landed one of the most unlikely ‘‘tweeners’’ in history during his breakthrough win over Rafael Nadal. It was a moment of casual genius that BBC commentator Tim Henman immediately nominated as ‘‘shot of the year’’. But what happened next was even cheekier. While Nadal turned impassively to prepare for the next point, Kyrgios spread his arms wide in a Messiah-like celebration.

This is a man with little regard for the niceties. Kyrgios goes on court to entertain, and his instinctive style can produce a wide range of outcomes. He can be brilliant, as he was in beating Roger Federer over three sets in Madrid last month. Or he can be feeble, as he was against Stan Wawrinka in the first round of Queen’s last week.