Nick Kyrgios does not regret his scathing criticism of Novak Djokovic, but insisted he is now 'very close' to the Serb and that their relationship is completely mended.

The Aussie firebrand and the 21-time Grand Slam champion faced each other in a  charity exhibition match at Rod Laver Arena on Friday night, raising over $250,000 for charity.

It was the chapter in an increasingly friendly relationship between the two. 

Last year, Kyrgios was among the few players to speak out in favour of Djokovic, after the Serb was controversially deported from Australia on the eve of the Australian Open.

And the 27-year-old revealed his relationship with Djokovic, whom he lost to in the Wimbledon final last year, was stronger than with any of the other of tennis' Big Three.

'I think my relationship with the big three is all different,' he told the Sydney Morning Herald on Saturday, two days away from the start of the Australian Open.

'I’m really close with Novak now. [I’m] quite close with Roger [Federer]. And me and Rafa [Nadal] – we just [nod] when we walk past each other.'

The blossoming friendship between Kyrgios and Djokovic appeared unlikely back in 2019, when the former slammed the nine-time Australian Open champion in a New York Times podcast.

'I just feel like he has a sick obsession with wanting to be liked,' Kyrgios said.

'He just wants to be like Roger. For me personally - I don’t care right now, I’ve come this far - I feel like he just wants to be liked so much that I just can’t stand him.'

Two years later, the Canberra-born star unloaded on Djokovic again, condemning his 'boneheaded' decision to hold a tennis charity event in Croatia that led to a number of players contracting Covid-19.

Kyrgios, however, is unrepentant about his comments.  

'I don’t really regret anything – I think life is too short to regret,' he said. 

'You kind of learn from these experiences. They are all kinds of building blocks.

'At the same time, I think it’s made our relationship even more special, now it’s gone from a rough sort of place to [...] we’re helping each other out on the biggest stage. 

'To think I’m able to do that with one of the greatest of all-time is cool.'