There was barely a spare seat in the house.

The most talked about man in tennis — certainly the most talked about man outside the top 600 in the world — was on court.

After the studious examination with which the Pat Rafter Arena crowd observed the two matches prior, featuring last year’s two Australian Open women’s finalists Madison Keys and Aryna Sabalenka, there was an air of expectation.

Expectation of what, exactly, nobody is sure.

Kyrgios was the entertainer in the travelling show that is the world tour, happy to act the clown or rage against a line call one moment, whip up the crowd with a flamboyant drop shot or conduct a chant the next.

This is what the final phase of the career of Nick Kyrgios amounts to.

It’s a standalone event.

There’s no future narrative to explore, no lengthy grand slam run to hope for.

Just entertainment.

But an hour and six minutes after it started, the crowd filed out, underwhelmed and disappointed as Kyrgios limped to a 6-3, 6-4 defeat against American Aleksandar Kovacevic.

Kyrgios never really looked comfortable.

Yes, there were some all-too-brief moments of brilliance from the former grand slam finalist, some of his 11 winners a result of vintage Kyrgios power and precision, that languid slash of his racquet belying his power.

But the ease with which Kovacevic hit the majority of his 28 winners told the real story.

Kyrgios simply cannot move across the court the way top level tennis demands he has to in order to be competitive.

His body simply does not allow him to extend rallies — his awkward loping to the baseline from his chair evidence enough of the difficulty his ailing lower limbs are giving him.

His right leg, encased in a compression bandage after his doubles clash on Sunday, was clearly worrying him — flexing it at the change of ends.

His left ankle, clamped in a supportive bandage, cannot allow him much of the springing mobility a top-level player needs, either.

His right elbow as well, straining from the efforts of serving at close to 200km/h after nine months off the tour.

But this is the acknowledged reality that Kyrgios exists in.

“I’m never going to be … I think it’s unfair,” Kyrgios said. 

“I use Thanasi as an example, or myself, or [Juan Martín] Del Potro or [Dominic] Thiem or [Kai] Nishikori, we look at some of these people that were at the top of their game competing for grand slams, and then you have parts of your body that just fail and can’t take the load of being at that top level.

“That’s what happens.

“I mean, it’s so hard for me to go out there, even on the practice courts sometimes … there was a point in my life, in 2022, when I was winning multiple titles in a year … there was actually a delusion [that] I genuinely thought I was the best player in the world. 

“When you’re at the top of the sport, I genuinely thought I was unbeatable. 

“I’d go out on court, and I thought no-one can genuinely beat me.

“You actually have that confidence and delusion that you are that person. 

“After you have these surgeries … I guess they kind of pull you down and it’s like you don’t have that belief anymore.

“It’s sad, in a way, but that’s just the reality.

“It’s just sport so you can’t be too upset. That’s why you have to really be grateful for moments like that doubles match the other night, and the fact that I got through this and I’m ready to play doubles tomorrow, I’m still extremely happy with myself and proud of myself.

“There was a time where I won this tournament, and now, even just going out there, there is no shame in losing. I think people now, they’re afraid to lose and afraid to go out there and not play their best.

“But that’s not reality.

“So even me going out there and taking another loss on the chin, to someone that, to most tennis fans and people, to someone I shouldn’t lose to, but I’m not afraid to lose.”

When boxers topple over the hill, they say it’s the power that’s the last thing to go.

Kyrgios still has that power.

Down in pace slightly during his doubles match on Sunday, he was ripping his serve nicely in the singles, thundering the balls down at over 190km/h.

And he still has an exquisite touch.

But not enough of it.

Not enough for 27-year-old New Yorker Kovacevic, in any case.

The 58-ranked American admirably maintained his composure, delivering thunderous serves of his own as well as a delightful tease of shots that emphasised his evident competency at the net.

Although Kyrgios curbed a lot of the silliness that he occasionally is prone to deliver, he was still engaged in near-constant conversation with his team, the crowd, even himself.

That can be hard to ignore.

Kovacevic shut it all out.

“Credit to my opponent today, he played lights out,” Kyrgios said.

“You can tell that he’s new to the tour and he’s really locked in … he’s a hell of a player. 

“He’s going to be one to watch for sure. He’s obviously had a breakthrough year last year and he’s going to continue to have big wins.”

The signs of Kyrgios’s struggles were there in Sunday’s doubles, where it was evident that Thansi Kokkinakis would be the driving factor in their success or otherwise. 

Kyrgios was simply playing a holding role to allow his friend to showcase his own return from injury.

But love him or hate him, Kyrgios is genuine box office.

Scintillating, exhilarating and aggravating, yes.

But unmistakably box office.

Last week, Kyrgios admitted the end to 2025 was “pretty outrageous” but said that the crowds who have flocked to see him made him proud.

“I see the crowds packed in [and think], wow, maybe I did actually do a decent job. I’m pretty proud of myself,” he said.

“I’ve literally had this sport in the palm of my hand the last couple of years.

“Every move I make, it’s always commented on.”

He’s not wrong.

The critics of the Battle of the Sexes — and there were many, all of whom were entirely justified — perhaps missed the principal reason for it taking place at all.

The whole point was to get people talking. About the sport. About the players.

It’s content.

In an era where clicks are currency, the Battle of the Sexes hit the jackpot — no matter how uncomfortable the concept actually is.

Sabalenka said that too: “What I’m sad about is that some people got it wrong, the whole idea of that event.

“It wasn’t about proving something to anyone. It was about to show that tennis can be really huge and we can bring a lot of attention on an exhibition match, which usually never happens.

“We just proved that, that’s all what it was about. And fun.”

Kyrgios was honest about his motivations moving forward, insisting that he wanted to play more matches this year and that his appearance in Brisbane is a “stepping stone” to a busier 2026. 

But playing singles regularly may yet be a step too far in every sense.

“I think every time I play, the crowds are pretty packed,” Kyrgios said, oddly melancholy at his plight.

“I’m doing the best I can out here, and I just want to go out there and try and give them [the fans] a shot.

“I mean, I’m losing and I see my little nephew in the crowd…

“I realise, I’m trying to do the best I can. Whether or not I’m giving them [the fans] grand slam finals, probably not, but yeah, I’m doing the best I can right now.”