Five potential candidates to coach Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios

PAT Cash has already ruled himself out, while another experienced Australian coach, Roger Rasheed, has put his hand up for what is best described as a unique challenge, offering high rewards for the rodeo who can ride this bucking bull.

Now that Nick Kyrgios has acknowledged he is in need of a coach, the lobbying and speculation about who might land this gig — be it a once-in-a-career opportunity or the Devil’s candy — has already begun.

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Thus far, the names that have been thrown up in the media have been largely Australian, such as Darren Cahill, Rasheed, an old great Tony Roche and a recent one in Lleyton Hewitt.

But there’s no reason that Kyrgios should confine himself to Aussie coaches, even if we have long been the sport’s answer to Austrian ski instructors. It’s also possible that Kyrgios has someone in mind already.

The most important criteria for coaching Kyrgios isn’t that the candidate be “the best coach available”. Rather, he (or she) must be the coach best suited to Kyrgios.

Kyrgios did a decent job of self-diagnosing his problems after his ludicrous loss to Andreas Seppi: He said he needed to stop playing basketball, get serious, prepare properly, get fitter and find a coach.

Here’s a handful who shape as ideal candidates — even if they’re uninterested — in coaching the game’s most outlandish, unfulfilled talent:

1. Darren Cahill.

Cahill’s coaching resume is faultless. He was Hewitt’s formative coach, when Lleyton ascended to the ATP mountain, and went on to expertly guide the great Andre Agassi in the brilliant twilight of Agassi’s ultimately stunning career.

Hewitt and Agassi were hardly without temperamental foibles, though Andre had turned into an elder statesman by the time Cahill joined the entourage.

Agassi, indeed, is probably the most positive role model for Kyrgios, given that he was an under achiever who turned it around.

Cahill still has a role coaching world number four Simona Halep, but otherwise does commentary with ESPN. One tour insider doubted Kyrgios would appeal to “Killer” Cahill, who had knocked back Roger Federer.

2. Radek Stepanek.

If this is a less familiar or decorated name, Stepanek is the one person who’s been most mooted as a prospective Kyrgios coach within tennis circles.

In large part, that’s because Kyrgios once said he’d like to be coached by Stepanek, a Czech whose resume includes relationships with a number of glamorous female players, in the future.

Stepanek has a strong friendship with Kyrgios and reckons the unconventional Aussie has the potential “to be the best player in the world” — an assessment made only a week ago (sport360.com).

Kyrgios’ Czech mate said the Australian could go to the top “if he cuts off his downs and mentally will get on the right track”.

Stepanek, 38, meets the top criteria suggested by John Newcombe, which is that the coach be someone that Kyrgios — “A different type of person” — embraces. Conversely, he has no coaching experience.

The problem with Stepanek coaching Kyrgios is simply that he hasn’t retired. Perhaps Kyrgios has held off from appointing a coach until his mate has hung up the racquet and quit the tour.

3. Ivan Lendl.

If this is a longshot, since the grim-faced Ivan is Andy Murray’s cornerman and has no need for drama, one cannot argue with Lendl’s credentials.

Clearly, the former world no 1 has the find of the steely focus that might keep the Kyrgios train firmly on the tracks; certainly, I can’t imagine him putting up with the kind of carry on that saw our Nick’s self-destruction v Seppi.

On the other hand, why would Lendl bother?

4. Lleyton Hewitt.

Like Stepanek, Hewitt has the advantage of an existing relationship with Kyrgios, via his role as Davis Cup skipper. He’s a smart operator, who will command respect and while he wasn’t averse to tantrums or remonstrations, antics were never harmful to performance.

Downsides are that a) as Davis Cup skipper he’s involved with an entire team and would have limits on his time and b) there’s an argument — certainly it’s debatable — that Kyrgios is better served by someone who isn’t as entangled in the Australian tennis network.

5. Roger Rasheed.

Rasheed, another ex-Hewitt coach, warrants consideration for this reason alone: that he’s interested in the job. Rasheed liked Kyrgios’ open admissions in the Seppi post mortem. “The first thing you have to do is admit stuff,” Rasheed told Gold FM.

But “admitting stuff” and pinpointing his own foibles has never been on obstacle for Kyrgios.