Nick Kyrgios gave his followers trigger for concern on Tuesday as he misplaced with a whimper in opposition to world quantity 64 Wu Yibing on the Stuttgart Open. The Aussie was enjoying his first aggressive singles match since October after present process knee surgical procedure, with supporters now fearful as as to whether he can return to type in time for Wimbledon.

Kyrgios' return to motion was hotly anticipated this week. The charming 28-year-old was drawn in opposition to Wu within the Round of 32 however the match did not go in keeping with script in Stuttgart.

Moving laboriously and struggling to win factors on his opponent's serve, a jaded Kyrgios was despatched tumbling out of the event with a 7-5 6-3 defeat. The efficiency has sparked issues over whether or not he will likely be again to his finest at Wimbledon, with the principle draw getting underway in lower than a month.

Fans have been even calling for Kyrgios to drag out halfway via his defeat to Wu when it turned clear that he was less than the problem, with @HighburyHeart writing on Twitter: "Kyrgios needs to retire this match otherwise he's f***ed for Wimbledon."

Meanwhile, @TennisUpdates23 added: "Kyrgios clearly not moving anywhere near 100 per cent after the knee surgery earlier in the year, no idea why he rushed back this soon if he wasn't healthy yet. Every game he's winning is because of his serve, barely winning points on return."

They weren't the one onlookers feeling as if Kyrgios might have jumped the gun in returning to the court docket, with @damiankust explaining: "Kyrgios definitely looking like he rushed his return after the knee surgery. Very tentative with the movement. I guess he really didn't want to miss the grass season."

Others have been fast to level out that Kyrgios was 'miles away' from the participant that bounded all the way in which to final 12 months's last at SW19, the place he was finally defeated by 23-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.

"Why would I bet on Kyrgios in his first match in six months?" wrote @chinesecarryout on Twitter. "Dude does not look the same right now." Some viewers have been important of what they perceived to be an absence of struggle, with @TheSportsGlobe_ complaining: "If Nick Kyrgios isn't gonna try why is he even playing?"

Before his outing in Stuttgart, Kyrgios' final aggressive match got here on the Japan Open final October. The nature of his comeback will due to this fact come as a significant disappointment after shedding gentle on an extended, drawn-out restoration course of this week, though the participant admitted that he relished the chance to spend time together with his household.

"I wouldn’t say it was major surgery, but I had quite a serious surgery on my knee," Kyrgios defined to reporters. "It's taken me about five months to get back to even playing, moving and [ready to play] against these players. It’s been difficult, but at times it’s been amazing just to be home with my family.

"Tennis is a sport the place you journey a lot of the 12 months and being residence, for me, was necessary. But seeing everybody [else] play wasn’t straightforward at instances. I’m simply tremendous excited that my knee is a bit higher and I’m in a position to play now."