Nick Kyrgios has not played a professional tennis match in almost a year and it seems any plans for a comeback may now be over after he confirmed his plans for this year’s Wimbledon Championships.

The Aussie maverick has been battling injury issues for a couple of years and played just one match on the ATP Tour in 2023 before he was forced to abandon his attempt to play at Wimbledon last summer.

Now the 2022 Wimbledon runner-up has confirmed he will be back at Wimbledon this summer, but not on the court.

After his entertaining performance as a commentator with discovery+ and Eurosport at the Australian Open in January, Kyrgios has been signed up by the BBC to bring his brand of colourful TV presentation to their team this summer.

With long-time BBC contributor Boris Becker still missing from their team as he continues his exile from Britain following his prison sentence on fraud charges, the BBC will have a new face in their line-up at the All England Club after Kyrgios was unveiled as their star signing.

He will join a team that will include Andrew Castle as lead commentator and Wimbledon legend John McEnroe, who could provide some entertaining commentary alongside Kyrgios.

Speaking at the BBC’s ‘Summer of Sport’ launch event in London on Wednesday, chief content officer Charlotte Moore confirmed that Kyrgios and his fellow Aussie Ashleigh Barty will be on their team at Wimbledon.

Kyrgios formed an impressive broadcasting partnership with commentator Nick Lester at the Australian Open and he told Tennis365 that the partnership was an unexpected success.

“I didn’t know Nick too well before we started working together,” Lester told Tennis365.

“I got a call from Eurosport a week before Christmas to say they had made a big signing and they needed someone to commentate on-site and as I was already there, so that’s how it all came about.

“The golden rule of tennis commentary is not to talk during the points and Nick worked it out pretty quickly.

“What he was saying was interesting and as I’m sure he was being well paid to do the job, it was my job to get the best out of him.

“From the reaction we have had during and after the event, it seems like it worked out well. With him, it was always going to be quite raw, but the reason why it worked so well is he was just himself.

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“A lot of ex-players are put into a commentary box and they are not given much guidance. It is sink or swim.

“One of the most engaging parts of listening to Nick is there was no filter. What we were hearing from Nick Kyrgios saying it as it was and not caring what anyone thought.

“That’s what made it so nice to listen to. He wasn’t afraid of upsetting anybody. He was talking as he would have done without headphones and that was the nicest part of working for him.

“Also, there are not too many current players who have played against the top guys in the game today working in commentary and that’s why Nick had something new to offer.

“A lot of ex-players are put into a commentary box and they are not given much guidance. It is sink or swim. One of the most engaging parts of listening to Nick is there was no filter.

“What we were hearing from Nick Kyrgios saying it as it was and not caring what anyone thought. That’s what made it so nice to listen to. He wasn’t afraid of upsetting anybody.

“He was talking as he would have done without headphones and that was the nicest part of working for him. Also, there are not too many current players who have played against the top guys in the game today working in commentary and that’s why Nick had something new to offer.”

Tennis fans will be looking forward to the return of Kyrgios to the commentary box, but his deal with the BBC has instantly come under fire from a senior British politician.

Kyrgios admitted assaulting an ex-girlfriend but avoided a criminal conviction at a court hearing in Australia last year and Caroline Nokes, the Conservative MP and women and equalities committee chair, suggested the BBC were wrong to hand him a lucrative contract.

“The BBC should hang its head in shame at this appointment,” said Nokes

“It’s a disgrace and shows the utter contempt our national broadcaster has towards women.

“Not content with consistently underpaying their own female staff and forcing out women once they hit a certain age, they now bring a man who admitted assaulting a woman on board for Wimbledon.”

Kyrgios has regularly suggested he would like to make a return to tennis, but his absence from the first half of the 2024 tennis year and this move that ensures he will miss his favourite tournament once again suggests he may have hit his final ball on court as a professional.