MEDALS WITHIN AUSSIE REACH
Kyrgios packs for England
AUSTRALIA is guaranteed two gold and four silver medals from the 2017 Gold Coast Multi-Nations at Broadbeach.
Despite having only played preliminary rounds in four out of eight disciplines, the host is assured six gold or silver medals given it boasts dual chances in each event.
The top-two ladder finishers progress directly to the ultimate medal decider, while the third and fourth spots playoff for bronze.
Australia fields “Green” and “Gold” teams in each discipline of the seven-nation event and the two will face-off in the gold decider of both the men’s triples and women’s fours.
The hosts will face New Zealand in the golden match of both the women’s singles and men’s pairs, which assures the squad of at least a further two silvers, which it will try to turn into gold.
Australian teams will also compete in the bronze medal playoff matches in women’s singles and men’s pairs.
The green and gold contingent could potentially secure as many as four gold, two silver and two bronze medals from the first half of the event.
However, the nation will need to wait until Wednesday to learn the colour make-up of their medallions, with play turning to the opposite disciplines tomorrow and all eight finals scheduled for Wednesday.
Given Australia is using this event as a selection tool for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, players are able to swap between the disciplines, meaning the exact details of the final matches are yet to be determined, but likely to remain as played in tonight’s seventh round.
The Gold Coast MultiNations continues today with the first round of the men’s singles and fours, and women’s pairs and triples, in addition to the third round of the para-sport event, which is a GC2018 qualifying event. NICK Kyrgios’s French Open tennis campaign is over following a third-round doubles loss with fellow Australian Jordan Thompson.
Kyrgios and Thompson went down 6-4, 6-4 to American Donald Young and Mexican Santiago Gonzalez at Roland Garros.
Thompson dropped serve in the seventh game of each set of an entertaining clash, with the Australians’ unable to convert their only break-point chance in the final game of the match.
Despite the defeat, it was still a successful campaign after the first-time pairing took out French second seeds Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut in the opening round to provide Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt another doubles option for Australia’s semi-final later this year, on clay, in Belgium.
Kyrgios thrilled French fans with his tweeners and no-look flicks on Court 3 but they will have to wait another year to see the colourful talent after his singles assault only lasted two rounds in Paris.
The 22-year-old will now switch his focus to the grasscourt season, with Queens his only scheduled event before Wimbledon, starting on July 3.
He is projected to drop one place to 20th in the world next week and will need a good run at Queens to lift his ranking inside the top 16 for a strong seeding at Wimbledon.
While Kyrgios and Thompson are out, Strasbourg champions Casey Dellacqua and Ashleigh Barty are through to the third round of the women’s doubles.