TLDR
The International Tennis Integrity Agency suspended Nick Kyrgios after a WADA-accredited lab confirmed cocaine metabolites in a sample taken at Mallorca in June 2026. A tribunal will set the final penalty, which under current rules can reach four years.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
ITIA confirms positive test from June event
The International Tennis Integrity Agency provisionally suspended Nick Kyrgios under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme on 4 August 2026, after a WADA-accredited laboratory confirmed benzoylecgonine, a cocaine metabolite, in a sample he gave at the Mallorca ATP 250 event on 22 June.[1] The lab confirmed the finding on 17 July 2026.[1]
Kyrgios retained the right to appeal the provisional suspension but had not done so as of the ITIA's announcement on 19 August.[1] An independent tribunal will set the final penalty once the case proceeds.
Kyrgios admits the finding publicly
Kyrgios posted a statement to Instagram on 19 August confirming the result. "I recently failed a drug test in Mallorca after testing positive for cocaine. I made a huge mistake and I take full responsibility for it."[3]
Kyrgios said he would "step away from social media and public life for the next 28 days."[3]
Penalty range and what comes next
An in-competition cocaine violation carries up to a four-year ban under the 2021 WADA Code, with reductions available for out-of-competition use or approved treatment.[2] Kyrgios's sample was collected during competition at Mallorca, so the lesser out-of-competition reductions do not apply automatically.
It might be adios for Kyrgios. The 31-year-old was ranked outside the world's top 900 when the Mallorca sample was taken, more than a decade past the career-high No. 13 he reached in October 2016, and a full four-year ban would keep him out until August 2030, when he will be 35.[5] The men now defining the tour would still be approaching their best: Carlos Alcaraz would be 27 by then, Jannik Sinner 29. Even a reduced penalty would leave him rebuilding from a three-figure ranking in his mid-thirties.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, speaking after his first-round US Open win on 31 August, said the outcome was "pretty much expected, to be honest" and that he was "surprised it came so late, though."[4]
Kyrgios, a former Wimbledon finalist, must await an independent tribunal's final ruling before any return to competition is possible.[1] The ITIA has not announced a hearing date.
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Caleb Reed covers breaking news and sport. He works to the rhythm of a story as it unfolds, and he is happiest when the facts arrive faster than anyone can spin them.
