Nick Kyrgios posts a revealing, never-before-seen photo from his childhood - as he sends a strong message to young Aussies who are struggling

Image of a young Nick Kyrgios will shock tennis fans Kyrgios posted the picture online to inspire his followers The 28-year-old won't play in Australian Open due to injury

Aussie tennis star Nick Kyrgios has shocked many of his social media followers after sharing a never-before-seen photo from his childhood.

Kyrgios, 28, posted an image on Instagram showing him shirtless and overweight as a youngster.

The photo came with the inspiring accompanying message: ‘this one is for all the young ones out there…..IT CAN BE DONE!’

As he entered his teenage years, Canberra raised Kyrgios shed his excess weight and announced himself to the tennis world after winning the 2013 junior Australian Open title.

Interest in the sporting maverick then reached fever pitch the following year after he beat then world number one Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon in the fourth round of the men’s singles main draw.

Aussie tennis star Nick Kyrgios has shocked many of his social media followers after sharing a never-before-seen photo from his childhood

Kyrgios, 28, posted an image on Instagram showing him shirtless and overweight as a youngster (pictured)

Nick Kyrgios previously posted this picture of himself as a kid to show his impressive body transformation and inspire others

Kyrgios was instantly touted as the next ‘big thing’ in tennis – and despite making the Wimbledon final in 2022 against Novak Djokovic, many fans believe he hasn’t realised his considerable potential.

He only played one match last year due to a knee injury and won’t feature on court at the 2024 Australian Open, which starts on January 14.

Tournament director Craig Tiley stated Kyrgios will be at Melbourne Park in some capacity – and he has delivered, with the polarising star recently confirmed as a pundit for Eurosport.

The global sporting channel said Kyrgios will provide his ‘unique perspectives’ at the first Grand Slam of the year.

‘To enhance the storytelling like never before, we’ve assembled one of the most impressive expert line-ups of tennis legends and superstars,’ Eurosport boss Scott Young said.

‘We are particularly excited to welcome Nick Kyrgios to our English language commentary team this year and know fans will benefit from his unique perspectives and closeness to the current crop of champions and competitors taking to the court this year.’

Kyrgios will join tennis royalty during Eurosport’s coverage, including the likes of Boris Becker, John McEnroe, Mats Wilander, Justine Henin and Tim Henman.

How Kyrgios interacts with Becker will be fascinating given the pair don’t see eye to eye.

Childhood photos like this show Kyrgios when he was completely unrecognisable from the super-fit star he is today

Despite making the Wimbledon men’s singles final in 2022 against Novak Djokovic, many fans believe Kyrgios hasn’t realised his considerable potential on court

Nick Kyrgios started dating Sydney influencer Costeen Hatzi in December of 2021 – and the couple are still going strong

In 2020, Becker called Kyrgios a ‘rat’ for calling out tennis players who flouted Covid-19 rules during the pandemic, with the Aussie hitting back by calling him a ‘doughnut’.

That same year Becker told the tennis bad boy to ‘shut up for once’ in another outburst over the pandemic, and when Kyrgios made a social media post featuring a photo of himself playing with Team World in the Laver Cup and captioned it ‘different breed’, Becker replied: ‘In your dreams.’

The feud then went up another notch last month after Becker – a six-time Grand Slam winner – blasted the Aussie for saying the German wouldn’t cut it on the modern circuit.

Posting on X, Becker was typically blunt.

‘Nick is making a lot of noise about tennis lately!?! Why does he speak about a sport he apparently hates,’ he wrote.

‘Fact-check….Nick has never won a major championship as a player…so where is the credibility coming from?’

As expected, Kyrgios responded, pointing to Becker’s ego before mocking the German for hiding assets – a reference to his 30-month jail sentence for tax evasion.