Once again Australian sensation Nick Kyrgios has illustrated his potential with a straight set wins over Rafael Nadal in Cincinnati. It is the third time he has defeated a top-two player this season, but his problem lies with the those lower down the rankings.
So far this season, the Australian has suffered a total of 12 losses on the tour. Out of those, seven were to players ranked lower than 40th in the world. Some of those losses were due to Kyrgios’ well-documented struggles with injury, but a pattern is forming. One that the 22-year-old openly admits.
“Little kid playing on centre court of Cincinnati against Nadal, that’s the way, the best has to come out,” Kyrgios said.
“The problem for me is trying to bring it on an everyday basis, say, centre court of Lyon with, like, five people against Nicolas Kicker earlier this year, I lost.
“Tonight I’m playing Rafa and I win.
“These matches aren’t the problem. It’s those matches for me.”
Whilst Kyrgios’ talent is clear for many to see, it is his behaviour that has attracted critics. Highlighted last year by a temporary suspension from the tour for ‘unsportsmanlike conduct.’ This year has seen a maturity in the Australian, but there are still incidents that continue to attract unwelcome publicity.
Throughout his career, the two-time grand slam quarter-finalist has been accused of tanking during matches. In some matches those allegations have been supported by strong evidence. Reflecting on his win over Nadal, Kyrgios stressed that he would never tank in a ‘match like this’. Although he openly admits to doing so in other situations.
“Obviously I think it’s easier to say that for me because you see me tank ridiculous amounts of matches against, like, on back courts and stuff like that, and you never see me doing anything silly obviously in a match like this.”
The casual admission could be a sign of a more grown up Kyrgios, acknowledging his previous mistakes. Although only time will tell if this occurs. In the meantime his focus is to ‘get back on track’ after a series of physical and personal issues.
“Ever since Davis Cup, had such a big high. Obviously my grandpa passed away. Had some off-court issues. My head’s been all over the place.” He explained.
“I have just been going through a load of s***, sorry for cursing, but a load of stuff that’s distracted me from just trying to play some tennis, and hopefully I’m just trying to get on the right track again.”
On Saturday Kyrgios will play David Ferrer in the Cincinnati semifinals. A win will move him into his first Masters 1000 final.
