Nick Kyrgios intriguingly insists that when he plays doubles with Novak Djokovic at the Brisbane International it will be the 24-time grand slam winner who will gain the most benefit.
Kyrgios, who will play in his first competitive tennis tournament since June 2023, has fun when he plays his entertaining and on-the-edge brand of tennis
Now he believes it is 37-year-old Djokovic's time to let his hair down.
The 29-year-old Kyrgios is on the comeback trail after nagging knee and wrist injuries curtailed his career, but he bristled when asked if he'd be looking for pointers from Djokovic in the Brisbane tournament which starts on Sunday.
"I don't pick his brain," Kyrgios said.
"I mean, you're acting like I'm not a decent tennis player. I've beaten the guy twice.
"Look, he's an amazing player, the greatest ever to play the court. I wouldn't say I'm going out there and (saying), 'Oh my God, Novak, you're the best. Please give me advice'.
"I'm not like that. I'm just going to go out there and have some fun. I think I can actually help him more because he's got to the point in his career he wants to obviously have a bit of fun."
Djokovic can go past Margaret Court's record of 24 grand slams with a win at next month's Australian Open and Kyrgios said he noted a change in the Serbian's approach.
"You don't get to a position like that and you don't get to have a career like that without serious discipline day in, day out. Now he's starting to have a bit of fun," Kyrgios said.
"Obviously employing Andy Murray as his coach, he is looking for a change. He's playing doubles with arguably the most controversial tennis player.
"He is I think to the point where he wants to have something fresh, have a bit fun, remember that he can reward himself at the end of the day. It doesn't always have to be super, super straightforward and no fun at all."
How the yin and yang duo will fare as doubles partners is anyone's guess, including Kyrgios's.
"I don't know. I don't know how it's going to be," he grinned.
"We might get absolutely snipped. We've never played doubles before. We might not win. Everybody thinks we're going to mesh. Two completely different personalities. Let's see how it goes."
Kyrgios, who has drawn big-serving Frenchman Giovanni Perricard in the first round of the singles, said he was taking his comeback "day by day".
But the 2022 Wimbledon finalist remained optimistic about the standard of tennis he could reach.
"I would love to be able to go out there and play the way I played in 2022, compete for grand slams. I still believe I can, whether or not that's factual or not," he said.
"I always back my ability. I always go out there believing I can win. I still feel I can produce a level that's pretty high."
