Nick Kyrgios speaks out after breaking down in tears during Indian Wells match

Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios has responded after breaking down in tears during his first-round match at the Indian Wells Masters.

On Thursday evening, Kyrgios returned to court at the Indian Wells Open in California, United States, as he took on Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp in the first round.

Prior to the match, there were major concerns over Kyrgios' fitness as he was seen struggling with wrist pain during a practice session.

The Australian missed nearly a year and a half of action after suffering a knee injury before having problems with his wrist.

Kyrgios took to court and played some good stuff but lost a tight first set 6-7 (7-9).

However, things began to unravel in the second set as he was broken early on by Van de Zandschulp.

With the score at 3-0, Kyrgios broke down in tears as he sat on his bench, struggling with his wrist injury.

Eventually, the pain was too much and the 29-year-old was forced to retire from the match.

Speaking after the match, Kyrgios explained why he was overcome with emotion on the court.

Nick Kyrgios breaks silence after tearful exit at Indian Wells

He said: "This process has been probably one of the biggest challenges I’ve faced in my life. Reality, it’s not too bad, but for my tennis career, it’s by far the biggest.

"Just the amount of work that goes in when I go back home or when I’m not playing, it’s not fun. I know that I can’t really be doing any more to try and get back and play."

Kyrgios added: "I guess it’s just the amount of work I put in and I’m still having so much discomfort in my wrist. That’s I guess why I got a bit emotional towards the end because it’s one of my favourite tournaments."

When asked about his future in the sport, the Australian replied: "It's all an experiment at this point. I was told I was arguably maybe not ever playing tennis again. [But] I feel I'm like right there. I feel like I can compete.

"I'm there, but if I'm not able to finish matches it doesn't really matter at this point. I'm not too sure right now. I don't even... I'm not sure how it's going to pull up tomorrow.

"I want to go out there and I want to compete. If I really didn't want to play, I didn't have to rehab, I didn't have to try and get back on the court. I want to play."

Van de Zandschulp will now take on Novak Djokovic in the second round.