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Cameron Norrie fought off three match points to secure his place in the second round while Nick Kyrgios’ first ATP Tour appearance since March ended in a defeat at the Brisbane International.

Australian Kyrgios, 30, was defeated by Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-3, 6-4 in just 65 minutes. He had only played six ATP singles matches in the previous three years and was given a wildcard for the event.

The defeat comes after Kyrgios won last month’s exhibition match against Aryna Sabalenka, the female world number one.

In the end, Norrie and American Kovacevic would share the stage in the next round after defeating Frenchman Ugo Humbert 1-6 7-6 (8-6) 7-5.

After suffering a number of severe injuries in recent years, Kyrgios, who is currently ranked 670th, wants to improve his fitness so that he can qualify for the Australian Open, which will take place on January 18 in Melbourne.

He won a point with one of his signature underarm serves in the second set while he appeared to be clutching his elbow in disarray with the 58th-ranked Kovacevic.

Kyrgios’ chances of winning his first Grand Slam since his first-round defeat by Jacob Fearnley at his home tournament in 2025 will suffer as a result.

Since reaching the 2022 Wimbledon final, he has had multiple surgeries on his wrist and knee, but he said he is “still very proud” of himself for making a comeback.

As Kyrgios reflected on his injury journey, he said, “I thought I was the best player in the world.”

“I guess these operations kind of pull you down and make you feel like you don’t have that belief anymore,” you may say. In some ways, it’s depressing, but that’s just the way it is.

They believe that you simply go under the knife and come back, sit on the couch until he recovers, and you throw him back out there until he is the same player, I believe the people there believe. Simply put, that is not how it is.

Craig Gordon claims he was persuaded to keep playing after having conversations with Scotland manager Steve Clarke and Hearts boss Derek McInnes.

The 43-year-old goalkeeper has only made two competitive appearances during Scotland’s World Cup qualifying double-header against Greece and Denmark in November. He has yet to play for the Scottish Premiership leaders in a league game this year.

He told BBC Scotland, “Both of them wanted me to continue, so that undoubtedly improved the situation.”

Gordon and his family are “definitely discussing retirement,” but Gordon claims helping put an end to Scotland’s long search for a World Cup spot means the effort has “already been well worth it.”

The keeper, who started out at Tynecastle and returned in 2020, is currently back-up to Alexander Schwolow, 33, after missing the start of term due to injury.

He may seek a January loan to get some game time before the World Cup because of this. McInnes says he is content with the situation and that Gordon is eager to keep such an experienced player.

He remarked about a potential departure, “I’m not going to be pushing for it.” There is still a lot of time left in the season. I believe I’m only one step away from being given the chance to play here, and it will be my responsibility to do so.

We have a chance to really push ourselves in the second half of the season and see where it can lead. It’s therefore somewhat in the balance.

There is a lot to look forward to here, despite the fact that I can’t guarantee that it won’t happen. I still feel like a significant member of the squad.

I must be prepared and demonstrate to [McInnes] in training that I am ready to play if he does so. At this point, we are. More than that, nothing else is discussed.