Spaniard wins
Australian Open match 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4)Kyrgios displays fighting spirit and moments of classIrrepressible but outmatched, Nick Kyrgios departed the
Australian Open with a fourth-round defeat at the hands of world No1
Rafael Nadal, who took the match 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4) at the Rod Laver Arena. Containing some of the most thrilling tennis of the tournament, the three-and-a-half-hour tussle reached fever pitch in an electric third set, which Nadal won in a tiebreak, then chiselled his way to victory. Resilient in defeat, Kyrgios lost no fans.
After a scrappy start, Nadal broke as early Kyrgios’s second service game, a drawn-out affair and a microcosm of the night, in which the Australian veered between his brilliant best and frustrating worst: twice he erred with drop shots when he had his opponent on the ropes. Quirky and captivating as ever, Kyrgios looked outdone for both power and precision in the early stages. Scything forehands that had flashed past his previous opponents’ rackets were now coming back with interest. His unpredictability, previously his trump card, now seemed to be confusing Kyrgios himself more than his opponent.