As the US Open draws nearer, we wanted to shift our focus to what has turned out to be one of the most sought-after tennis shoes of 2019: The Nike Vapor X Kyrie V. As you might remember, this shoe was created in a joint effort between Kyrie Irving and Nick Kyrgios. The Australian phenom first sported these unique kicks on his home-court, so to speak, at the Australian Open. Since then, we've seen a colorway for Wimbledon, and now another for the US Open. What's perhaps most interesting about this 3rd iteration is that it could be the last. Nike has announced their performance tennis collaboration with Kyrie finishes this fall, but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy the unique colorway. It integrates Nike’s apparel graphics and colors into the upper for a seamless head-to-toe look inspired by New York City and basketball.
Now all that's left is to see if Kyrgios can play as good as these shoes look. He regularly flashes his world-class abilities, as well as his style, but can be inconsistent. Needless to say, Kyrgios fans are hoping he can put it all together at a major for the first time. He hasn’t reached the quarterfinals of a major since 2015, but enters the 2019 US Open with a little bit of momentum.
At the Citi Open, Kyrgios showed why he’s considered by many to be among the top professionals in the sport today. On his way to capturing the title, he defeated formidable competition in Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev.
On the negative side, Kyrgios appeared in the news yet again for his temper after an incident in Cincinnati during his match against Karen Kachanov. The bottom line is if he can keep his cool, Kyrgios is among the best in the world. When he can’t, we hear about early exits and controversies. Either way, the man is simply fun to watch.
Background: I primarily participated in soccer and track & field at Homewood-Flossmoor High School. Some of my proudest accomplishments at that time were winning the conference title in soccer, and placing 6th in pole vault for Class AAA at the Illinois Prep Top Times Indoor Championship. In college, I took up weightlifting and nutrition more seriously. I Co-Founded, and was the President for, Redbird Bodybuilding at Illinois State University. We teamed up with exercise science and nutrition majors to help individuals learn about training techniques, program development, and overall health (among other topics). Now, I keep up with my own goals in regard to fitness and nutrition, and assist others who care to listen.
