Jacob Fearnley has deleted Instagram because of the attention generated by his Australian Open draw against Nick Kyrgios but the Scotsman will try to enjoy the experience.
The opening-round match, Kyrgios’ first at Melbourne Park for three years because of injury, will take place on Monday evening on John Cain Arena, where the maverick Australian encourages his supporters to generate febrile atmospheres.
Liam Broady described facing Kyrgios on the same court in 2022 as “absolutely awful”, revealing he had faced abuse from spectators, so it is no surprise that Fearnley admitted to feeling anxiety ahead of what will be just his third match at a grand slam.
“It’s not a match you want to see in Australia,” said the 23-year-old. “I know that the crowd’s going to be against me. Obviously there was a lot of excitement, as well, (about the draw) because it’s not a common match.”
Fearnley has experience from college tennis in the United States, with the Edinburgh player only turning professional last spring before a meteoric rise into the top 100.
“I’ve been to some pretty hostile environments,” he said. “Probably not as many people as are going to be watching on Monday. I’ve definitely had some nasty things thrown in my direction. You just have to ignore it and move on.
“I think the best thing I can do is just try to enjoy it as best as I can. Obviously focusing on myself is one thing. I understand that’s going to be very difficult to do. It’s still pretty early in my career. To have an opportunity and an experience like this is really cool.”
Jacob Fearnley vs Nick Kyrgios#BackTheBrits 🇬🇧 | #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/LGOYa39N5k
— LTA (@the_LTA) January 9, 2025
Fearnley made his grand slam debut as a wild card at Wimbledon last year, with his second match seeing him make his Centre Court bow and take a set off Novak Djokovic.
As part of his attempts to shut out the noise around this contest, Fearnley has come off social media, saying: “I actually deleted Instagram. I was getting a lot of messages. I wanted to try and stay as centred as possible.”
While Fearnley is ready for a difficult time on Monday, he has no problem with the way Kyrgios behaves on and off court.
“I’m a huge fan,” he said. “I’ve always said to my friends that I’m a big fan. There’s some people out there that don’t agree with the stuff he does. But I think it’s great for the sport. He increases viewership. He puts people in seats.
It's not kind of a match you want to see in Australia. I know that the crowd's going to be against me.
“You can’t really take anything away from him on that front. Obviously what he does on the tennis court is pretty incredible, as well. I think that’s great for the sport.”
Fearnley won his first tournament out of college on the grass of Nottingham in June and did not look back, adding three more titles on the second-tier Challenger Tour.
He sits at 86 in the rankings and is sure to go higher with no points to defend until the summer.
“I definitely surprised myself,” he said. “Not something that I expected or set out as a goal. It’s really cool. I’m trying to embrace all these moments that are coming my way.
“I’m super grateful for the opportunity that I have, the position I’m in. It’s pretty crazy. I’m very excited.”
