The 2018 Australian Open has been treated to the version of Nick Kyrgios who looks capable of being the No. 1 player in the world someday.

While the talented Australian has negotiated the first two rounds at Melbourne Park with relative ease, the most impressive aspect of his performances has nothing to with giant serves or forehand passes.

His usual air of confidence was on display against Rogerio Dutra Silva and Viktor Troicki this week, but it was underpinned by an evident increase in maturity.

Faced with the distractions of heckling spectators and controversial attire in his team box, the Kyrgios of old might have mentally capitulated despite having the upper hand in every other regard.

But for all these promising signs, it’s impossible to forget his previous meltdowns, some of which were triggered by the most trivial of matters.

That’s Kyrgios’ Achilles’ heel – because even casual tennis fans are aware the rest of his game is on par with just about anyone on tour.

His mentality certainly won’t become unbreakable overnight, however, Andre Agassi has suggested the 22-year-old should be focusing on a different issue to better himself.

The American believes Kyrgios is doomed to fall short of his enormous potential unless he beings working with a coach.

"I'm a big believer in life, and what I've learned is that learning in 10 minutes would take someone (by themselves) 10 years is a very effective way to maximize the short window that you get in this sport,” Agassi said, per the Sydney Morning Herald.

"To go it alone and not get access to things tried and lessons learned is an unforced error. But having no coach is better than having the wrong coach.”

COACH OR NO COACH

His last comment is especially relevant in light of what Kyrgios has achieved since parting ways with former pro Sebastian Grosjean last year.

While Agassi thinks the Aussie needs the right pair of eyes to unlock the peak of his powers, he expects no shortage of candidates to express interest in the role.

"I would imagine that there would be a lot of people that would take a great deal of pride in coaching him just based on his talent alone.

"If I was him, I would sit down in a room somewhere and put some deep thought into whom might bring to the table something that I may feel I need that I don't have.

"I always surround myself by knowing my weaknesses and filling those gaps. You do it business, you do it in life, and doing it on the tennis court, I would highly suggest that to anybody.”

Agassi – currently working alongside Novak Djokovic – has only recently broken into this line of work.

But considering he won six of his eight majors under the guidance of Brad Gilbert between 1994 and 2002, the 47-years-old knows all about the benefits of coaching.