advertisement

Quieter, calmer Kyrgios in Wimbledon quarters years later

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) - Nick Kyrgios stepped into a nearly full Centre Court to polite applause at precisely 1:30 p.m. on Monday, exited about 3 1/2 hours later to a louder ovation and, somehow, the 100-year-old stadium survived the experience.

In the warmup period, Kyrgios flicked a ball between his legs and closed with an underarm serve, hardly standard procedure. During the 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2), 3-6, 6-2 victory at Wimbledon over unseeded American Brandon Nakashima that followed, putting Kyrgios in a Grand Slam quarterfinal for the first time in 7 1/2 years, he tried those sorts of trick shots a few times. Afterward, he ditched his rule-conforming but backward, brim-bent white cap and white shoes in favor of red versions.

'œBecause,'ť he explained when pressed about the sartorial choices, 'œI do what I want.'ť

Yet, somehow, those seated in the Royal Box never turned their backs in protest. And, somehow, the grass-court tournament that dates to the 1880s did not grind to a halt.

Maybe that's simply because, in addition to smacking 35 aces and 'œripping the ball from the baseline'ť - to use Nakashima's words - despite a shoulder that hurt so much he took painkilling pills and received repeated treatment from a trainer, Kyrgios displayed a much quieter, much calmer demeanor than the guy who earned fines of $10,000 for spitting in the direction of a heckling spectator at the end of his first-round match and $4,000 for an audible obscenity during his tempestuous win against No. 4 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third round.

'œI was able to just say, '~Wow, look how far I've come,' to myself. I was bouncing the ball before I served; I really just smiled to myself,'ť said Kyrgios, owner of a tour-high 11 victories on grass this season. 'œI was like, 'We're here, we're competing at Wimbledon, putting in a good performance mentally. It was rewarding.'ť

The unseeded Kyrgios, now 6-0 in five-setters at the All England Club, next faces unseeded Cristian Garin, a 26-year-old from Chile who saved a pair of match points and authored the fortnight's first comeback from two sets down to defeat No. 19 seed Alex de Minaur 2-6, 5-7, 7-6 (3), 6-4, 7-6 (10-6) after more than 4 1/2 hours.

The other quarterfinal on their half of the draw will be 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal against No. 11 Taylor Fritz. Nadal got past No. 21 seed Botic van de Zandschulp 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (6), while Fritz, a 24-year-old American, earned his major quarterfinal debut with a 6-3, 6-1, 6-4 victory over qualifier Jason Kubler.

'œDoesn't even seem real," said Fritz, who hasn't dropped a set in the tournament.

Kubler, who also is Australian, offered his take on Kyrgios.

'œEvery time I see him, he's smiling. Every time I'm around him, it seems like I'm laughing,'ť Kubler said. 'œSo it's kind of weird when I read or see the comments about him, knowing him the way I do. He's just one of those people if you were to hang around him or spend any sort of quality time with him, you'd fall in love with him.'ť

The women's quarterfinals established Monday are 2019 champion Simona Halep vs. No. 20 Amanda Anisimova, and No. 17 Elena Rybakina vs. unseeded Ajla Tomljanovic.

The combined nine seeds who will participate in the women's or men's quarterfinals is the lowest total at Wimbledon since 2000.

'œI didn't really think I could do it,'ť said Tomljanovic, who lost to eventual champion Ash Barty in last year's quarterfinals. 'œAfter some tough moments this year, I thought: Am I ever going to get a chance again? I can't believe a year later, I'm in the same position.'ť

For Kyrgios, never one to follow a conventional path, it's been a much longer road.

His two previous Slam quarterfinals came at age 19 - at Wimbledon in 2014 and the Australian Open in 2015.

The Aussie spoke about feeling like a veteran at 27, and his self-description Monday included 'œcomposed'ť and 'œmature.'ť

Not terms generally associated with Kyrgios, but then again, as he told reporters at his news conference: 'œNone of you really know me at all. Like, you don't hang out with me at all. You only kind of see what you see on the court. It's always been a bit of a roller coaster. So I understand how it's mixed reviews. ... People just love to just have an opinion.'ť

Making the case that he's a changed man, Kyrgios thought back to a second-round loss to Nadal at Centre Court in 2019 and recalled: 'œMy agent had to come get me out of a pub at 4 a.m. ... I've come a long way, that's for sure.'ť

Certainly since Saturday, at least, when he repeatedly argued with the chair umpire and a Grand Slam supervisor, and eliciting accusations from Tsitsipas of being a 'œbully'ť and having 'œa very evil side.'ť It's the sort of ruckus Kyrgios has raised before, earning ejections and suspensions, and causing folks to wonder whether his enormous talent would ever carry him to the closing weekend of a major.

'œObviously,'ť the 20-year-old Nakashima said, 'œyou never really know what's going to happen with him out there.'ť

Nakashima evened things by taking the fourth set with a break, then went up 1-0 in the fifth. Kyrgios acknowledged handing over the fourth with an eye to disrupting his foe. Seemed to work: He earned five games in a row, before serving it out and closing this way from love-30: cross-court forehand passing winner; hanging on in an 11-stroke exchange until an admittedly fatigued Nakashima missed a backhand; 134 mph service winner; forehand volley winner.

When it was over, Kyrgios pounded his chest with his fist, shouted with a curse word mixed in and turned to his guest box - which included his girlfriend and his support team, whom he credits with helping him be a better person off the court, but not a full-time coach, because he doesn't have one.

'œI need a glass of wine, for sure, tonight," Kyrgios told the crowd during his on-court interview. 'œFor sure.'ť

___

More AP Wimbledon coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/wimbledon and https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Taylor Fritz of the US dives to make a return to Australia's Jason Kubler in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
Spain's Rafael Nadal reacts after winning a point against Botic Van De Zandschulp of the Netherlands in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Australia's Nick Kyrgios receives treatment during a medical timeout as he plays Brandon Nakashima of the US in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Australia's Nick Kyrgios reacts after winning a point against Brandon Nakashima of the US in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Brandon Nakashima of the US returns to Australia's Nick Kyrgios in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Australia's Nick Kyrgios returns to Brandon Nakashima of the US in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Brandon Nakashima of the US returns to Australia's Nick Kyrgios in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Australia's Nick Kyrgios pauses as he plays Brandon Nakashima of the US in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Chile's Cristian Garin reacts after defeating Australia's Alex De Minaur during a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) The Associated Press
Australia's Alex De Minaur reaches out to return the ball to Chile's Cristian Garin during a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) The Associated Press
Romania's Simona Halep celebrates after beating Spain's Paula Badosa in a women's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Amanda Anisimova of the US celebrates after beating France's Harmony Tan in a women's fourth round singles match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina returns to Croatia's Petra Martic in a women's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
Croatia's Petra Martic serves to Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina in a women's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
Taylor Fritz of the US reacts after winning a point against Australia's Jason Kubler in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
Romania's Simona Halep celebrates after beating Spain's Paula Badosa in a women's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali) The Associated Press
Australia's Ajla Tomljanovic celebrates defeating France's Alize Cornet during a women's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) The Associated Press
Australia's Ajla Tomljanovic, right, hugs France's Alize Cornet after defeating her during a women's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) The Associated Press
Amanda Anisimova of the US serves to France's Harmony Tan in a women's fourth round singles match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
France's Harmony Tan serves to Amanda Anisimova of the US in a women's fourth round singles match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
Spain's Rafael Nadal serves to Botic Van De Zandschulp of the Netherlands in a men's singles fourth round match on day eight of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) The Associated Press
Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.