Nick Kyrgios winning Wimbledon would be arguably the greatest ever achievement by a Canberra athlete

At first glance, it very well could be.

And if Nick Kyrgios does triumph over Novak Djokovic in the men's singles final on Wimbledon's centre court on Sunday night, it poses another interesting question - how much will winning change the public's perception of the controversial Canberran?

It certainly helps, but it's obviously made a tougher question by the domestic violence allegation hanging over his head.

The fact Djokovic is also a polarising tennis figure for the Australian public probably helps his cause as well. It's much easier to cheer on Nick when he's coming up against a pelican like Novak.

But back to the first question - would Kyrgios knocking over the Djoker be the GOAT achievement for Canberra?

It's hard to argue against it - although there's a fair field of contenders: Patty Mills winning the 2014 NBA championship; Michael Matthews winning the green jersey at the 2017 Tour de France; Michael Rogers' three world titles; Petria Thomas's Olympic gold medals; and Heather McKay going undefeated in squash for 20 years for a start.

The fact tennis is an individual sport certainly gives it an edge over achievements by individuals as part of a team.

(Although Kyrgios constantly refers to the importance his "team" has played in his path to the final. But in his case they're more a behind-the-scenes team, with it all coming down to him, his racquet and his tweeners to get the job done on the court.)

That alone would put a Wimbledon title ahead of Mills' effort in helping the San Antonio Spurs to the NBA crown - but it's fair to say Mills played a significant role across the five games in the championship series.

That probably also gives it the edge over Matthews' green jersey - given the influence "Bling's" Sunweb team would've had on him cycling to victory.

The same goes for Katrina Powell's Olympic gold medal with the Hockeyroos at the '96 Atlanta Games.

Michael Bevan was part of two World Cup triumphs for the Australian men's cricket team during his illustrious one-day career. And who could forget Ned Zelic's wonder goal to qualify Australia for the '92 Olympics.

The Canberra Raiders and the ACT Brumbies' premierships were iconic and important moments in ACT sport, but don't have the worldwide reach of a tournament like Wimbledon.

There's a raft of Canberrans from both those sides who also had massive moments on the world stage - like the Wallabies' 1999 World Cup and the 1990 Kangaroos tour wonder try where Ricky Stuart and Mal Meninga combined to save the Ashes in the second Test against Great Britain.

While not necessarily fair, reach also plays a role. Eyeballs and interest equals money. Just look at the bank balances of some of the biggest names in world sport.

If it wasn't for that McKay's career would easily be the biggest achievement - undefeated from 1962-1981 with 16 British Women's Championships to her name. It's not even a contest.

But squash is not exactly among the biggest sports in the world. Professional tennis is. And Wimbledon is its historic showpiece.

Rogers' three world titles in the individual time trial - aka the race of truth - are a massive personal achievement. And while the Tour is up there with Wimbledon, the cycling world champs are not just yet. If this was a Belgium story - where cycling is king - it would be a different story.

The Olympics, on the other hand, are bigger than Wimbledon. Especially the glamour events - the 100m - on both the track and the pool.

Which would have to put Petria Thomas's three gold medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics right up there.

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She saluted in the 100m butterfly, the 4x100m freestyle and the 4x100m medley in a stunning return from a shoulder reconstruction. Fair effort that.

Kim Brennan's gold in the single sculls at the 2016 Rio Games was another highlight.

Michael Milton's glittering Paralympic career - both at the winter and summer Games - was also worthy of mention.

Winning isn't everything, but it certainly helps. Everyone loves a winner after all.

Kyrgios clearly isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it will be interesting to see the reaction he gets in Australia if he does knock over the Djoker.

As I mentioned before, the fact he's playing another polarising figure certainly helps. Djokovic's short, arrogant attempt to rort the vaccination rules over the summer while the COVID-19 virus was running rampant won him no friends. And many were happy to see him sent packing with his unvaccinated tail between his legs.

If Kyrgios holds up the trophy in the early hours of Monday morning many will forget the transgressions of the past fortnight. The constant bickering with officials. The spitting in the direction of a spectator.

For some all the drama only adds to the occasion. As Kyrgios said himself: ''There's no such thing as bad publicity.''

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