Laver Cup: Nick Kyrgios snubbed from John McEnroe’s team

Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has been left out of John McEnroe’s "Rest of the World Team" in next month's inaugural edition of the Laver Cup. Over the years, McEnroe has been a relentless critic of Kyrgios, often questioning The young Australian's mental toughness and ability to thrive at the biggest stage.

Despite reaching the finals of last week's Cincinnati Masters, Kyrgios was left out of the "Rest of the World Team" in favour of World No. 28 Juan Martin del Potro and Canadian teenager Denis Shapovalov. Del Petro and Shapovalov would be joining Canadian Milos Raonic and the American trio of Jack Sock, John Isner and Sam Querrey.

McEnroe's "Rest of the World Team" will square off against Bjorn Borg’s six-man European squad in a Ryder Cup-style competition that will pit the former bitter rivals against each other. McEnroe and Borg were a part of the greatest rivalry in tennis through the 1970s and '80s.

Borg's team includes former US Open champion Marin Cilic, Austrian Dominic Thiem, veteran Czech Tomas Berdych and rising German star Alexander Zverev, besides the legendary duo of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Needless to say, the European team has a considerable edge against the "Rest of the World."

Federer, with his eyes set on the 2017 US Open, is excited to team up with Nadal, his longtime foe. “Finally, after all these years, I get a chance to actually support his forehand, his aggressive play, his everything, his fighting spirit. I know Rafa so well, and he’s been a wonderful champion for our sport. So for us to spend sort of a week together on the same team and exchanging ideas of how we could win the Laver Cup, I think it’s going to be really highly entertaining for both of us," the 19-time Grand Slam champion said.

Rod Laver, one of the greatest players in history, is honoured to have a new tournament named after him. “I’m totally honoured to have this particular event named after myself. I thank a lot of people, but I thank Team 8 and Roger Federer. Roger felt, that (early professional tennis) this was something that was important. I’m the throwback to the past champions. It’s a huge honour to be able to have this event as part of today’s world," said the Aussie great.

The inaugural Laver Cup will be staged in Prague, Czech Republic, between Sept. 22-24. The 2017 US Open, the final grand slam of the calendar year, will be held between Aug. 28 and Sept. 10 at Flushing Meadows, New York. Federer and Nadal are the odds-on favourites to prevail.