Australia’s world number 20 tennis player, the runner-up at last year’s Wimbledon, appeared at the Australian Capital Territory Magistrates Court in Canberra on crutches and wearing a knee brace after a recent operation.

His bid to have the assault charge thrown out on mental health grounds was rejected, but magistrate Beth Campbell threw out the charge, accepting the seriousness of the matter was "low-level" and indicating Kyrgios was not a risk of re-offending.

The 27-year-old had admitted assaulting then-girlfriend Chiara Passari on January 10 in 2021 by pushing her to the ground during a heated argument when they went out for dinner in the Canberra suburb of Kingston in December 2021.

The court heard Passari was standing in the door of an Uber preventing Kyrgios from leaving when he shoved her over.

He stood over her and remarked "seriously2 while she lay on the ground.

Passari reported suffering shoulder pain along with grazing on her knee.

Kyrgios had told Passari to "leave me the f*** alone" and to "just f***ing p**s off" while she asked him to get out of the car and to calm down.

Passari did not report the incident until 10 months later, when the couple split after getting back together following the incident.

In a statement read to the court she said she had been severely traumatised by the incident, experiencing severe weight loss, staying in bed day and night - unable to sleep or form new romantic relationships.

Kyrgios, who was accompanied in court by his current girlfriend Costeen Hatzi, an interior designer, his mother Norlaila and brother Christos, said in a statement: "I respect today's ruling and I'm grateful to the court for dismissing the charges without conviction.

"I was not in a good place when this happened and I reacted to a difficult situation in a way I deeply regret.

"I know it wasn't okay and I'm sincerely sorry for the hurt I caused.

"Mental health is tough.

"Life can seem overwhelming.

"But I've found that getting help and working on myself has allowed me to feel better and to be better."

Kyrgios described his performance at the 2019 Australian Open, where he lost in straight sets in the first round to Milos Raonic, as "one of my darkest periods", despite it being a time when "most would assume I was doing okay mentally or enjoying my life,".

He added: "I was lonely, depressed, negative, abusing alcohol, drugs, pushed away family and friends.

"I felt as if I couldn't talk or trust anyone.

"This was a result of not opening up and refusing to lean on my loved ones and simply just push myself little by little to be positive."

Lawyers for Kyrgios, who had to drop out of last month’s Australian Open at short notice because he required a cyst to be removed from his knee, appealed to have the charge of one count of common assault dismissed on mental health grounds, arguing it was an isolated incident and out of character.

Psychologist Sam Borenstein told the court Kyrgios suffered from recurring major depression, which included black periods, thoughts of self-harm, insomnia, agitation and feelings of guilt.

Borenstein revealed that Kyrgios had relied on alcohol and drugs as a means of coping, but was now making progress in dealing with the issues.

Campbell said Kyrgios acted poorly but the offence was not planned or premeditated and was a "single act of stupidity" by a young man attempting to remove himself from a tense situation.

"I do not record a conviction against your name, I do not find any necessity to place you on a good behaviour bond," she added.

Kyrgios is hoping to return to court for the Indian Wells Masters in California in March.