There’s a couple of things that instantly come to mind when we think about Nick Kyrgios.

Royalty is not one of them.

Well. Until now.

The 24-year-old tennis player, known for his uh, interesting work ethic, questionable attitude and impressive record against some of the sport’s greatest players, has royal bHow lood thanks to his mother, Norlaila.

Born in Gombak, a district in Selangor, Malaysia, her grandfather’s cousin was the Sultan of Pahang. This makes her, by birth, the Tengku – which loosely translates to princess – of Pahang.

Norlaila moved to Australia in her 20s, choosing to give up her title and leave behind her royal roots.

She became a computer engineer and married Greek house painter Giorgos Kyrgios. Nick was their third child.

Speaking to Malaysian media after her son's stunning four-set victory over then-World No. 1 Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon in 2014, Norlaila said she and Nick took pride in their Malaysian roots.

"Nick is very close to his Malaysian family, whom he has visited many times," she said. "He even played tennis at Cameron Highlands the last time we were in Malaysia.

"The entire Kyrgios family is very close to my family. I want Malaysians to take pride in Nick’s achievements as Malaysian blood runs through his veins."

Her region, Pahang, is a sultanate and Malaysia's third largest federal state.

The constitutional head is the Sultan, who is described as "the fountain head of justice and of all authority of government" in the state. The current Sultan belong to the male line of the Bendahara dynasty who have been ruling since the 17th century.

The reigning monarch Abdullah was proclaimed as Sultan on 15 January 2019, succeeding his father, Ahmad Shah, who abdicated four days earlier.

Succession order to the throne of Pahang is generally determined by the first legitimate son of the ruler.

Nick Kyrgios doesn't have much of a claim, and he's spent his career trying to take down (tennis) royalty - like Nadal, Federer and Djokovic - instead.

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