It’s time to Nick off after blowing shot
NICK Kyrgios has crashed out of the US Open, with a leg injury and a series of poorly timed errors killing off a golden chance to win his first grand slam.
The Australian was the favourite against 27th seed Karen Khachanov and had the backing of a raucous New York crowd, but he was hobbled from the first set and unable to recapture the form that saw him crush world No.1 Daniil Medvedev.
While Kyrgios battled valiantly to send the match to five sets, the 23rd seed was left to count the cost of mistakes at the end of the first and third sets, paving the way for Khachanov to win the quarter-final 7-5 4-6 7-5 6-7 6-4 in three hours and 39 minutes.
The Australian smashed two rackets after the match ended and then stormed off the court.
The loss may well be the end of Kyrgios’s season and he will rue the missed opportunity after the US Open draw opened up with Novak Djokovic missing and Rafael Nadal already knocked out.
The first set of the quarterfinal on centre court was a tight affair, with both players racing ruthlessly through their service games.
Kyrgios was concerned about some leg soreness through several early games but it did not appear to inhibit his movement or power.
Having chosen to serve first, he suddenly came under pressure when he missed an easy chance to send the set to a tie-breaker at 5-6. A double fault followed and Khachanov claimed the set.
Kyrgios then called for medical treatment in the break, saying he could not walk “without pain”.
But he promptly broke Khachanov’s serve, bringing the New York crowd to its feet as they willed him on.
Kyrgios’s movement on the baseline slowed in the second set as he continued to flex his leg and grimace more between points.
In a bid to win quick points, he pulled out his trademark tricks including a couple of crafty tweeners, as his serve remained unstoppable to help him even the match at one set apiece.
Khachanov’s similarly powerful serve helped him save two break points in the first game of the third set, frustrating Kyrgios, who went on to lose the set.
In the fourth set, Kyrgios threw caution to the wind and went on the attack, bringing the crowd back into the game as he broke Khachanov to go up 3-2. Khachanov broke back, however, before Kyrgios powered through the tiebreaker to claim the fourth set after midnight at Flushing Meadows.
Khachanov took charge once again early in the fifth set, breaking Kyrgios in the first game and snuffing out several chances for him to level it up.
Khachanov will now take on fifth seed Casper Ruud in the semi-final.