@Sportshorn
There have been several highs and several lows for Nick Kyrgios during the 2017 season. Wednesday afternoon would have to be considered a low. A shoulder problem which he also incurred a few weeks ago in Washington came to light again and eventually cost him his first round match. Kyrgios wrapped up his Grand Slam year with another early exit falling 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 to fellow Australian John Millman at the US Open.
Kyrgios dropped the opening set to the World No. 235 and then battled back to square the match after winning the second. However early on in the third set the No. 14 seed began favouring his right shoulder. After nearly every point he whinced and was constantly moving his shoulder around in discomfort. After a medical timeout and treatment from the physio the pain didn’t seem to subside. He also had a run in with chair umpire Carlos Ramos over a swearing incident receiving a code violation. It appeared he swore at himself in frustration over the injury. Kyrgios continued to play on holding serve until the final game of the set when he was broken by Millman. Frustration kicked in and Kyrgios smashed his racquet to the ground breaking it nearly in half. He received a point penalty at the start of the fourth set. Millman cruised the rest of the way sending Kyrgios home in the first round for the second straight Major.
“I knew it was going to be a tough match from the get-go”, said Kyrgios. “I was feeling good…. Every practice session I had here was good, feeling good. Early in the third set I hit one serve and I never felt the same after that…something didn’t feel right in my arm.”
Kyrgios had some curious comments after the match in regards to his commitment to the game. He has been coached part time by former pro Sebastien Grosjean for the past three months but the 22-year old doesn’t know if the two will continue their partnership.
“I’m not dedicated to the game at all,” he said. “There are players out there that are more dedicated, that want to get better, that strive to get better every day…I’m not that guy I don’t know, honestly. I’m not good enough for him. You know, he’s very dedicated. He’s an unbelievable coach. He probably deserves a player that is probably more dedicated to the game than I am. He deserves a better athlete than me.”
Kyrgios has been questioned about his commitment to the game before but at times this season he had still been getting good results. He beat Novak Djokovic twice, played an epic semi-final match against Roger Federer in Miami and he did reach the final at another Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati just ten days ago.
“In Cincinnati, I was not doing anything different. I was probably less dedicated than I was this week. I was playing basketball every day for two hours. Like I played an hour of basketball before I played David Ferrer in the semifinal. I was going to ice cream, like this Graeter’s place getting a milk shake every day. I was less dedicated. And this week I was dedicated, and my shoulder starts hurting.”
As for Millman, he’s had his fair share of injuries himself. He will face Tunisia’s Malek Jaziri in the second round. Jaziri needed three hours and 46 minutes and five sets to win his opening round match.
