Nick Kyrgios has withdrawn from Nottingham, confirming his intention to take a break before Wimbledon.
The 20-year-old Australian, who appeared to be sick during his second-round loss to Stanislas Wawrinka at Queen's, said following the match that he needed a physical and mental break from the game. He had withdrawn from his previous event at Stuttgart with an injury.
"I almost found it difficult to get myself engaged and didn't want to be there," Kyrgios said. "Probably going to stay in my house for a couple of days and sleep, play computer games and chill.
"Not think about tennis, turn off all tennis channels... Just not think about tennis for a week or so."
But the world No. 29, who defeated Rafael Nadal to reach the quarterfinals of Wimbledon a year ago, is still aiming for a good performance at Wimbledon. He noted that he had played only one match before the Australian Open because of a back injury, but reached the quarterfinals.
"Yeah, I feel confident still. I know that I could do some good things there, and I know that I don't necessarily need too many matches before Grand Slams," he said.
However, Wawrinka suggested that Kyrgios was simply expressing frustration and would be keeping up his training. "I'm sure he's not going to switch off," the No. 4 said. "I'm sure he's going to be ready for Wimbledon.
"When I read his interview, it’s always funny, a lot of things you can take. When I read before the match he was ready, excited for the challenge and now he was sick," he added. "So I’m just saying he’s saying a lot of things."
Kyrgios cited illness in his Nottingham withdrawal.