Nick Kyrgios has pulled out of Wimbledon with a wrist injury, just hours after announcing that he was “extremely confident” of having another good run at the world’s biggest tournament.

On Sunday morning (British time), following days of speculation over whether Kyrgios’s lingering knee injury problems would sideline him, Australia’s 2022 finalist had finally confirmed he was fit and ready to take on Belgium’s David Goffin in the opening round.

But 10 hours later, Kyrgios posted a message on social media, announcing his withdrawal from the grand slam because of a torn ligament in his wrist.

Kyrgios, who lost last year’s final to Novak Djokovic, had not mentioned the ailment in his morning news conference, but had suggested in what was thought to be a reference to his troublesome knee: “There are still some question marks, for sure”.

Kyrgios‘s withdrawal represents a major blow for Australia’s challenge, with the onus now on the country’s men’s No.1 Alex de Minaur to lead the charge of its nine remaining players.

Thanasi Kokkinakis, knocked out in singles qualifying, had been due to play doubles with his friend, so his tournament also looks over.

Kyrgios‘ withdrawal is a grievous disappointment for the All England Club as the ever-compelling Australian has become one of the biggest draw cards at SW19, especially with old favourites Roger Federer (retired) and Rafael Nadal (injured) out of the picture.

“Sorry to hear your news Nick Kyrgios – wishing you a swift recovery and hope to see you back on our courts next year,” Wimbledon said on its official Twitter site.

Kyrgios had earlier announced on Instagram, “I’m really sad to say that I have to withdraw from Wimbledon this year.

“I tried my hardest to be ready after my surgery and be able to step on the Wimbledon courts again.

“During my comeback I experienced some pain in my wrist … as a precaution I had it scanned and it came back showing a torn ligament in my wrist.

“I tried everything to be able to play and I am disappointed to say that I just didn’t have enough time to manage it before Wimbledon.”

Hours earlier he had said: “I’m extremely confident. I’ve never been a player that needs a lot of matches before playing a grand slam.

“What I’ve achieved in my career never leaves. I feel like I’m still serving as good as ever. I’m still able to beat a lot of people.”

The shock news left Wimbledon organisers scrambling to tweak the late-evening schedule, with No.4 seed Casper Ruud’s match against France’s Laurent Lokoli on Monday upgraded to court No.1 in place of Kyrgios-Goffin.

Meanwhile, wild card Goffin will have to wait to learn which lucky loser from the qualifying draw he will be now face instead, on No.2 court.

Kyrgios, who had pulled out of January’s Australian Open with a knee injury that required surgery and who also missed the French Open, had played only one competitive match all year.

• De Minaur leads Aussie hopes as Wimbledon 2023 gets underway

But despite a dismal performance in a straight-sets defeat to China’s grass-court debutant Wu Yibing, he was still adamant on Sunday morning: “I’ve been hitting with some really good players this week and my body is feeling OK.

“I’m not going to look forward and put unfair expectations on myself. I’m just going to try to do everything I can, prepare, go out there and play some good tennis.

“I feel as good as I probably could feel at the moment. I have worked extremely hard to play, and super-excited to see how it goes.”

– AAP