For the third day in a row, one of the top seeded or favorite men leaves the US Open 2022.
In a match that began Tuesday night and ended Wednesday morning, Nick Kyrgios lost to Russia’s Karen Khachanov in five sets in a duel between two of the toughest players in the game. , but also the two players that their minds often have. the path to success that so many people predicted for them when they were teenagers.
Khachanov won in three hours and 39 minutes of scrap, 7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 6-7, 6-4. Kyrgios seemed to gain momentum after catching the tiebreaker in the fourth set, but he lost serve in the opening game of the fifth set and never recovered.
“Crazy game,” Khachanov, 27th seed, said in an on-court interview. He will face Norway’s Casper Ruud, seeded 5, in the semi-finals.
For Kyrgios, the talented but temperamental Australian, the loss came two nights after he top seed and defending champion, Daniil Medvedev, another Russian. On Monday, Rafael Nadal, 22-time Grand Slam singles champion, lost in the fourth set to Frances Tiafoea rising American.
Nadal’s loss was less of a surprise than Medvedev’s, especially since few would be shocked if the two met in the final if they landed opposite a draw. It was surprising how effectively 23rd seed Kyrgios defeated Medvedev, who is widely recognized as the top hardcore player in the world, in the third and fourth sets.
The performance was among the best Kyrgios, 27, has ever played at a Grand Slam, if not the best. In those final two sets, game after game, Kyrgios knocked Medvedev off the field, unless he confused and frustrated Medvedev with his drops and volleys. There was little doubt at the end of the game that if Kyrgios could continue to play at that level, no one on the court would be able to stop him from winning his first Grand Slam singles title in a career marked by his strides. brilliance and tantrums. .
The only consistent point in Kyrgios’ game and the mind that dominates it is their unpredictability, and how tennis fans can’t resist that.
Goran Ivanisevic, the 2001 Wimbledon champion and now coach of Novak Djokovic, described Kyrgios as a “tennis genius”. But just when it seemed like Kyrgios had everything locked in – his massive serve, his blistering forehand, his quick movements, his breathtaking touch, his flaming temper – something terrible.
For Khachanov, the inability to find anything close to the level of near-perfection he achieved before Medvedev brought him down. Kyrgios just swerved slightly against a far inferior opponent. Photos often burn the lines that have passed them. Shots often glide through the net on a rope that hits the ice, or even into the center of the net in smaller moments. He struggled all night to crack Khachanov’s serve code, especially given the rare opportunity to crack it.
At one point, he was so frustrated with not being able to get a quality return that he hit balls as if he were trying to kill a fly with a swing. After missing Khachanov’s two golden chances at the end of the third set, he smashed his racket into the ground and then hit a television camera with his hand.
The situation seemed to turn upside down three games later, as Kyrgios swiped an easy series of balls into the center of the net, delivering a crucial third set for Khachanov. Kyrgios broke in the fourth set, pulled back, then dominated the tiebreak, but a brief stumble early in the fifth set cost him the game.
Khachanov, 26, isn’t perfect, but he’s as good as he should be, serves hard, gets enough points for a smooth and powerful forehand, and attacks as soon as he finds an opening. He also kept his emotions in check, even as crowds gathered behind Kyrgios – New York has always loved a performer – and shouted at the Russians. He waited for Kyrgios to grow to the point of frustration and wanted to leave the court and return home to Australia.
Kyrgios never got there, even though he had plenty of chances. Instead, he fought to the bitter end, hitting first serves and slamming serves, groaning as he chased shots with a stubborn player who tried to put makes his own big serves when necessary, including on the final point, a final bomb down the middle of the court. Moments later, Kyrgios smashed a racket on the side of the court.
Kyrgios’ immediate future is uncertain. He loathes the time away from home and family that the sport entails. His mother was sick. A trial has also been scheduled for early October for Kyrgios faces a fee assaulted his ex-girlfriend in Canberra last December. Kyrgios has not yet commented on the allegations. He could face prison if found guilty.
He has long had a friendly relationship with tennis. He played little in the early days of the pandemic, choosing not to travel the world to play in empty stadiums. Then, in January, he won the Australian Open mixed doubles title with longtime friend Thanasi Kokkinakis.
Winning both lit a fire for Kyrgios, while also teaching him it takes commitment and energy to play a Grand Slam finish in more than two weeks. He skipped the clay court season because he hated playing on the court, then take over at Wimbledon, became the talk of the tournament with his superb play and antics, which included brawling with officials and taunting Stefanos Tsitsipas into submission. In the final he lost to Djokovic in four setswho won his 21st Grand Slam singles title.
Kyrgios said if he wins Wimbledon, he will likely struggle to find reasons to keep playing tennis. The sport and the expectations that were placed on him when he exploded when he was 19, tortured himand make him abuse alcohol.
This US Open gave him the best chance of his career to win a Grand Slam singles title. Djokovic’s refusal to receive the Covid-19 vaccine prevented him from entering the country to attend, and then Nadal was eliminated in the fourth round.
When Kyrgios hit the field on Tuesday night, no Grand Slam title winner was left behind in the draw, and he was playing some of the best tennis of his life, until he was no more.
