Thanasi Kokkinakis: "I took a risk that no one had dared to take", the crazy bet that could relaunch his career

After months of silence, Thanasi Kokkinakis breaks his silence and recounts his high-risk surgery. An intervention never attempted on a tennis player, which could have ended his career. Today, he finally savors a daily life without pain and dreams of a return in 2026.

AFP

Clément Gehl

le 03/12/2025 à 14h01

1 min to read

Kokkinakis

Thanasi Kokkinakis has not played since the Australian Open last January. The Australian is undergoing a long recovery due to shoulder surgery and hopes to return in 2026.

As he revealed, this surgery could have been fatal to his career, but he primarily wanted to put an end to the pain.

"I didn't want to keep playing through the pain anymore"

"It was a risk I decided to take, knowing that I might not get another chance. No tennis player had ever undergone this type of surgery before, so it was a risky bet.

I didn't want to keep playing through the pain I had been enduring for years, so I wanted to take the risk and see what would happen.

My goal is to return to the courts in 2026, but for now, I'm savoring the present moment, being able to play without pain, something I have hardly ever managed to do in my career."