Nick Kyrgios Accepts One-Month Ban After Cocaine Positive Test
Nick Kyrgios has entered a treatment program and accepted a one‑month ban after testing positive for cocaine, drawing a sharp line under one of the most confronting episodes of his turbulent career.
The 2022 Wimbledon finalist, who had been provisionally suspended since August 4, is cleared to return to competition from Friday after anti-doping authorities ruled his use of the drug took place out of competition and agreed to reduce his sanction.
A positive test, and a blunt admission
Kyrgios failed a drugs test at an ATP 250 event in Mallorca on June 22, where he lost in the first round to fellow Australian Adam Walton and earned 6,570 Euros in prize money. He has now forfeited those earnings.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed he tested positive for benzoylecgonine, a cocaine metabolite, with a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) laboratory verifying the result on July 17. The 31-year-old was immediately barred from playing, coaching or even attending tournaments sanctioned by the ATP, WTA or Tennis Australia, as well as national-level events in his home country.
When confronted by ITIA investigators, Kyrgios did not duck the issue. He explained that he had taken cocaine socially on a night out in the days leading up to the Mallorca tournament. An independent scientific expert at a WADA-accredited lab supported that account, stating the levels detected were consistent with out-of-competition use.
That distinction mattered. Under WADA rules, a non-competition cocaine violation carries a default three-month suspension, which can be cut to one month if the player commits to an approved treatment program. Kyrgios agreed to do exactly that, and the ITIA reduced his sanction accordingly.
He had the right to appeal the provisional suspension. He chose not to.
“I made a huge mistake”
Kyrgios went public last month with a candid Instagram post, accepting responsibility and addressing the fallout.
“I recently failed a drug test in Mallorca after testing positive for cocaine,” he wrote. “I made a huge mistake and I take full responsibility for it.
“I’m sorry to my fans, my family, my sponsors and everyone close to me. Above all, I’m sorry to the kids who follow me. I know the example this sets and I’m deeply disappointed in myself.”
The post pulled back the curtain on a player who has long described himself as conflicted about the sport that made him famous. The physical and emotional toll of the past few seasons, he suggested, had left him wrestling with the endgame of his career.
“I’m not going to make excuses, but I do want to give some context about where I’ve been,” he wrote. “The last couple of years of injuries have taken a huge toll on me, both physically and mentally.
“My body hasn’t been able to do what my mind expects it to do, and coming to terms with being near the end of my career has been harder than I ever imagined.”
Kyrgios has played only four official ATP Tour singles matches this year, his knee and wrist issues repeatedly stalling any comeback. His ranking, once as high as No.13 in the world, has plunged. More than once he has hinted that his days as a singles force are effectively over.
None of that, he stressed, excuses what happened.
“I’ve always said I didn’t choose tennis — tennis chose me,” he continued. “But letting go of something that has been my whole life is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to face. At times I’ve felt helpless and alone.
“None of that excuses what I did.”
A wake-up call and a step back from the spotlight
If the ban exposed a damaging lapse, Kyrgios insists it has also jolted him into action.
“The good news is that this has given me a wake up call,” he wrote. “For the next 28 days, I’ll be stepping away from social media and public life while I focus on getting myself right.
“I’d ask that people respect my privacy during that time, and most importantly the privacy of my family.
“I’m sorry. I’ll do the work and come back better.”
The ITIA’s decision means his formal suspension lasts one month, rather than the three-month baseline or the far longer bans that can apply in more serious anti-doping cases. The governing body accepted that his use of cocaine was unrelated to performance, occurred outside competition and was followed by cooperation and a commitment to treatment.
Kyrgios’s last appearance came in the men’s doubles at Wimbledon on July 2, when he and Alexander Bublik exited in the first round. At that point, it looked like another tentative step in a slow, injury-riddled return. Instead, it proved to be the prelude to a very different fight.
Now he stands at a familiar crossroads, but this one is starker than any tactical decision on a grass court or hard court. With his ban ending and a treatment program underway, the question is no longer just how much tennis he has left — it is what version of Nick Kyrgios the sport will see if he chooses to walk back through the locker-room door.
