LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has been provisionally suspended after testing positive for cocaine during the Mallorca Open in June.
Kyrgios provided a sample on June 22 which later tested positive for benzoylecgonine, a cocaine metabolite.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency confirmed his provisional suspension began on August 4.
The 31-year-old can appeal the suspension but has not done so, according to the agency.
Kyrgios cannot compete, coach or attend Grand Slam events while awaiting a tribunal decision.
The Australian admitted making “a huge mistake” and said he takes full responsibility for the positive test.
He said recurring injuries had taken a significant physical and mental toll in recent years.
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Kyrgios has played only four singles matches this season and last competed at Wimbledon in the doubles.
He and Alexander Bublik lost their opening-round match at the All-England Club.
Kyrgios said he would step away from social media and public life for 28 days.
He apologised to his fans, family, sponsors and young supporters over the incident.
Cocaine is prohibited under World Anti-Doping Agency rules, although reduced sanctions can apply to out-of-competition use.
However, Kyrgios’s sample was collected during a tournament where he competed in singles.
The Australian who has won seven ATP singles titles had previously voiced out his struggles with mental health, saying he “genuinely contemplated” suicide and spent time in a psychiatric hospital in London after losing at Wimbledon in 2019.
Meanwhile, Kyrgios could be banned for up to four years but if he can prove he took the drug outside of a competition, the maximum ban he would face is three months.
