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Nick Kyrgios's Australian Open title dream is over before it even began after the big home hope was forced to withdraw due to a knee injury.

Kyrgios's long-time physio Will Maher says the 2022 Wimbledon runner-up has a cyst growing on his meniscus.

While it's not a career-threatening injury, Kyrgios is not sufficiently fit to contest his home grand slam.

"I'm obviously extremely disappointed," Kyrgios said.

"Going in as one of the favourites, it's brutal."

He had been due to play Russian Roman Safiullan in the first round on Tuesday night.

The 19th seed's scratching is another hammer blow to the Melbourne Park major, which was already ravaged by superstar withdrawals and retirements.

Women's titleholder Ash Barty, seven-times champion Serena Williams, her sister Venus, dual winner Naomi Osaka and retired legend Roger Federer are all missing in 2023.

Australia's highest-ranked woman Ajla Tomljanovic also pulled out on Saturday with a knee injury.

But Kyrgios's absence is undoubtedly the biggest setback yet for organisers.

Love or loathe the 27-year-old, tennis's most polarising figure is compelling viewing.

After inspired runs to last year's Wimbledon final and US Open quarter-finals, Kyrgios had high hopes of breaking his grand slam duck in Melbourne.

"I'm just exhausted from everything. One of the most important tournaments of my career. Hasn't been easy at all," he said of the decision to pull out.

© AAP 2023

A severe thunderstorm warning for dangerous and life-threatening flooding has been issued for Queensland's far north as heavy rain continues to lash the region.

Rising floodwaters have cut the north's primary transport corridor, with the Bruce Highway closed in multiple locations.

The warning includes coastal areas between Ayr and St Lawrence and adjacent inland areas and follows torrential falls of 100mm in an hour just northwest of Airlie Beach.

Minor, moderate and major flood warnings have been issued for multiple river systems across Queensland, with further warnings likely in coming days.

Major flood warnings are current for the Don River and Pioneer River.

Daily rainfall totals are likely to exceed 200mm, with isolated totals up to 400mm possible.

The Bureau of Meteorology says six-hour rainfall totals of up to 180mm are likely in Mackay, Proserpine, Bowen, Collinsville, Hamilton Island and Ayr on Monday.

However, the coast and ranges north of Mackay could be pummelled with between 250mm and 400mm in the next 24 hours.

"Locally intense rainfall which may lead to dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding is also possible over far southeastern parts of the Herbert and Lower Burdekin coast and the Central Coast and Whitsundays," the bureau said in an alert.

The forecaster said six-hour totals of up to 150mm are possible in parts of the Central Highlands and Coalfields district as well.

It follows days of wet weather with falls of 317mm recorded at Jubilee Pocket, 299mm at Peter Faust Dam, 252mm at Preston, 237mm at Bowen and 230mm at Proserpine.

In the five days to 9am Monday, parts of north Queensland were swamped by rainfall totals between 500 to 700 mm of rain.

Acting Premier Steven Miles says a number of people have been rescued from floodwaters or stranded by road closures, but there have been no lives lost.

He urged people to take care on the roads with a broader part of central and northern regions under active thunderstorm warnings on Monday.

"Of course, today as people start to return from holidays and return from the weekend, there'll be more people trying to travel around, so if you're in that area, please look out for warnings of course, do everything that's asked," Mr Miles told reporters in Maryborough.

"If the road's closed, if it's flooded, forget it."

Meanwhile, three women rescued from a tree after becoming stranded in floodwaters north of Mackay are recovering from the ordeal.

The women are being treated at Proserpine Hospital after they were found clinging to the tree in Palm Grove on Sunday afternoon.

"It really turns it on sometimes up north and we've got a really humid tropical air mass up there at the moment, and a trough and all the areas sort of feeding into that trough," senior forecaster Steve Hadley told ABC radio on Monday.

"Be aware that there is some flooding around over the next few days and that heavy rainfall as well.

"It should ease off towards the middle of the week."

Rain and thunderstorms will continue until Wednesday around the central coast of Queensland, while showers and thunderstorms will continue across much of northern Australia and inland Queensland.

Rain and storms may ease later on Wednesday as the trough weakens and moves northwards and offshore.

More broadly, showers and thunderstorms are possible over Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, which may produce flash flooding and localised disruptions.

© AAP 2023

Eddie Jones' shock Wallabies return has the coach on a World Cup quarter-final collision course with his former side England, or old sparring partner Michael Cheika's Argentina.

Either match-up would be one Jones and Rugby Australia relish, with chairman Hamish McLennan declaring Australia can win the tournament in France from September after confirming Dave Rennie's immediate departure on Monday.

Jones will return to the post he lost 18 years ago, on a five-year deal to lead the world's No.6 side.

The long-term contract would keep him at the helm for the British and Irish Lions' tour in 2025 and the 2027 World Cup in Australia.

"It is going to be an immense period for Australian rugby," Jones said.

"The Wallabies squad is a really talented group of players with good depth.

"If we can have everyone fit and healthy going into the World Cup this year, I am confident that we can go to France and break the 24-year drought of winning the Rugby World Cup."

RA's decisive move against Rennie comes after mounting injuries, consistently poor discipline and selection head-scratchers marred the New Zealander's three-year tenure that yielded a 38 per cent win rate - the worst of any Wallabies' coach with a tenure of at least 30 Tests.

Sydney product Jones was sensationally sacked by England in December despite recording the best winning ratio of a coach of that country of 73 per cent, in a stay that included back-to-back series wins in Australia.

McLennan told AAP Jones' dismissal had changed RA's thinking, fast-tracking to now a previously-mooted potential return in 2024, when Rennie's contract had been due to expire.

The 62-year-old Jones will arrive from England to begin on January 29.

Placing in doubt the future of former Brumbies mentor Dan McKellar - a man widely viewed as the Wallabies coach-in-waiting - Jones is set to be given latitude to select his own assistants.

"There's a lot riding on this World Cup; we could do very well if we get it right," McLennan told AAP.

"We all believe we've got a real shot at winning this year.

"It's always open to conjecture, but at RA we're happy to make the tough calls.

"He intimately understands our pathways and grass roots and there's no doubt that rugby will be more talked about under his coaching."

The latter is certainly the case. A potential quarter-final berth against England would be a platform for a scorned Jones' revenge that goes back to 2003, when England beat his Wallabies in Sydney's World Cup final.

If not the old enemy, it could be a quarter-final with Argentina, whose coach Cheika had an 0-7 record against Jones' England when leading Australia.

The improving Japan - another team Jones has coached at a World Cup - also loom as a quarter-final possibility.

Jones will also take on the women's Wallaroos job in a "world-first" appointment for a side still yet to benefit from the professional status of their world champion rugby sevens equivalent.

Rennie oversaw a return to world No.3 for the Wallabies on the back of five straight wins, but in the 17 Tests that followed they were unable to notch consecutive victories and slumped as low as No.8.

He held a four-day camp with a 44-man squad last week and insisted Jones would play no part in Australia's World Cup campaign, comments that raised eyebrows at RA headquarters.

RA chief executive Andy Marinos credited Rennie for building the squad's depth after more than 20 injuries curtailed the side's progress last year.

"The work ethic, the spirit within the group, and the way the team carries itself are all a direct result of Dave's input," he said.

"He has made a real mark on this group of players."

© AAP 2023