Nick Kyrgios, Novak Djokovic exhibition clash in doubt after Australian Open injury scares

Kyrgios' disrupted build up to the first major of the year took another twist when Djokovic needed ongoing treatment on his left leg during an exhibition match against Daniil Medvedev.

Kyrgios was locked in as the No. 20 seed for the Open on Wednesday night, with Djokovic taking the No. 4 spot. They were set to meet for a similar friendly clash on Friday, with fans racing to get cheap tickets to watch them go toe-to-toe in a Wimbledon final re-match.

But Kyrgios now faces the prospect of playing round one with minimal match fitness after being forced to withdraw from the United Cup and then the Adelaide International.

Australian great Pat Rafter admits Kyrgios, the world No. 21, is an unknown prospect at the Australian Open given he hasn't played since the World Tennis League in Dubai last month.

"You've got Nick, Thanasi [Kokkinakis] and [Alex] de Minaur ... these guys have outside chances of winning [the Australian Open]," Rafter said on The Happy Slam podcast.

"Nick, I don't know what chance to give him. I really don't know. He's his own worst enemy and his own best talent, he's a bit of a mystery and I wouldn't like to be a betting man.

"Can he win? Yeah, he's got the skills and I always like guys like Alex de Minaur."

Kyrgios and Rafter have had a rocky relationship over the years, dating back to their days in the Davis Cup set up when Rafter was captain and Kyrgios was an emerging star.

A promo for the podcast said Rafter gave his take on "what the locker room thinks of Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis".

Rafter was asked about Kyrgios and Kokkinakis as a doubles partnership and said: "The players are really upset about it ... it doesn't bother me either way. It's a bit of a circus.

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"At the same time it's entertainment. They create drama, they create ticket sales and people watching, then good on them. At what expense, I don't know."

Kyrgios responded to the tweet: "He would have absolutely zero idea on what the locker room thinks.

"Me and Kokk have great relationships with most of the players on tour. Guy is clueless."

Kyrgios is set to be one of the main storylines of the new tennis Netflix series, Break Point, which starts on January 13.

It sets the stage for the start of the Australian Open next week, but whether Kyrgios can recapture his singles or doubles form remains unclear.

He has battled an ankle injury and returned to Canberra to do rehabilitation before setting a date with Djokovic.

Djokovic pushed through hamstring tightness to claim last week's Adelaide International 1 and firm as favourite for a 10th Melbourne Park title.

He has won 34 consecutive matches in Australia, with his last defeat a shock fourth-round loss to Korean Hyeon Chung in at the 2018 Australian Open.

But his return to Australia hasn't all gone smoothly.

Djokovic tweaked his left hamstring in the semi-final in South Australia when also playing Medvedev and required a medical time-out, but recovered to win that game, then the final.

After beating Sebastian Korda in Sunday's decider the 35-year-old revealed he'd worked "deep into the night" with his physio after the semi-final and to shake off the niggle in time for the following day's final.

"It was all right," Djokovic said, noting he was confident it wouldn't affect him at the Open.

"There were a few times in the match I felt was tightening up, the muscle, but nothing that would worry me for my performance."

But in Wednesday's practice match with Medvedev at Rod Laver Arena, the first time Djokovic had played in front of the Melbourne public since last year's deportation saga, the injury appeared to again rear its head.

The session was meant to be 75 minutes but Djokovic exited after Medvedev claimed the first set 6-4 in 36 minutes.

He broke the Russian former world No.1 in the opening game but, when leading 3-2, received treatment, with a member of his team completing some knee extensions.

Knee extensions can be used to release the hamstring.

He only won one more game from that point.

Medvedev won the next two games and Djokovic again received the same treatment at the break when trailing 4-3 and again at 5-4, before pulling the pin when the Russian triumphed a game later.

Spanish veteran Pablo Andujar stepped in for the star Serb as Medvedev remained on court.

Djokovic is meant to play Kyrgios in another exhibition match on Friday night. The friendly practice match set was played in jovial spirits between Medvedev and Djokovic in front of a small, polite crowd of spectators who paid $20 each for the new chance.

Djokovic, who refused to receive COVID-19 vaccinations and caused an uproar when he arrived in Melbourne last year before ultimately being deported, received a reasonably warm welcome.

There was no sign of animosity towards Djokovic or Medvedev, who lamented his own treatment from fans in Australia last year.

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