He was playing video games with Australia's newest tennis hero during the week and Canberra Brave reserve goalkeeper Nick Eckhardt hopes Nick Kyrgios' success at Wimbledon inspires the Australian Ice Hockey League side.
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Kyrgios made headlines across the country with his magnificent performance at Wimbledon last week, the wildcard defeating world No. 1 Rafael Nadal on his way to the quarter-finals.
This week he was relaxing back in Canberra, swapping the racquet for a Nintendo Wii controller and catching up with family and friends.
"I've known Nick pretty much since he was born,'' Eckhardt said.
''Good family friends, my mum and his parents go way back.
''I went to school with his older brother Christos and [older sister] Hali is my age. Hali's my best mate.
''When Nick came into the world he was a little brother.''
Kyrgios will remain in Canberra until Monday when he will fly to Melbourne to train for a couple of weeks before heading overseas again in preparation for the US Open.
"The kid's unbelievable," Eckhardt said. "He's inspired the nation.
''A little bit of belief, determination and hard work and look where he is now.
"When he comes home to Canberra all he wants to do is relax – wants to play a bit of games, basketball or go see a movie, or have a coffee.
''We're all working, but we try and accommodate him as much as we can because we hardly get to see him.''
Eckhardt has his own sporting ambitions as a reserve goalkeeper for the Brave, who will be looking to reclaim top spot in the competition when it takes on the Sydney Ice Dogs in Liverpool on Saturday.
"I don't want to jinx us and say a Cinderella story, but it's a massive turnaround from being on the bottom of the table [like the now-defunct Canberra Knights last season] to sitting near the top of the table,'' Eckhardt said.
"Great new management, great new coaching and it's really good to be a part of something like that.
"To see the support that we've got from the Canberra community, that was unfathomable how much support came out of nowhere.
"We're playing for the fans and for ourselves as well, it's really good.''
The Brave is in second on the AIHL ladder on 30 points, just two points behind the Melbourne Mustangs with a game in hand.
AUSTRALIAN ICE HOCKEY LEAGUE
Saturday: Sydney Ice Dogs v Canberra Brave at Liverpool, 5pm.
