ROW AS UMPIRE STOPS KYRGIOS QUITTING
NICK KYRGIOS staged an extraordinary revival to make the third round of the US Open last night after the controversial intervention of high-profile umpire Mohamed Lahyani. The fiery Australian seemed not to be trying when he trailed Frenchman Pierre Hugues Herbert 6-4, 3-0, appearing to be deliberately avoiding a potential match-up against Roger Federer. It was then that Lahyani got down from his chair to address Kyrgios, urging him to give his best. Whatever the intention, it did the trick as Kyrgios emerged a 4-6, 7-6, 6-3, 6-0 winner. But officials launched a probe into the conduct of the umpire, looking at whether he had breached the rules of impartial conduct. He was heard saying ‘This isn’t you’, and ‘I want to help you’. Kyrgios, who repeatedly double faulted up to that point, played it down, saying: ‘He was concerned about how I was playing, like, ‘‘Nick are you OK?”’