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Madrid QF: (6)Kei Nishikori def. Nick Kyrgios 6-7(6) 7-6(1) 6-3

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8K views 66 replies 44 participants last post by  MWW 
#1 · (Edited)
#3 · (Edited)
Great match! :D IMO this is a top 10 match of 2016.

Nishikori played at top 10 level the entire match, Kyrgios served from a tree to keep up for two sets. The shotmaking of the first two sets were out of this world, third set was considerably worse but it made up for it with drama.

Great tournament for Kyrgios, was two points away from winning this. It went exactly like the Wawrinka match until 7-6 6-6. The tweener lob at 5-6 30-0 was really spectacular. When his momentum went down his level dropped for a while, which cost him the match. He still needs to improve his ROS, Nishikori was solid but not completely unbreakable.

Nishikori hit consistent winners from both wings throughout the match, really played well in the 2nd set TB, which turned the tide of the match. He could have had 6-1 in the third but nearly choked it away (again :lol: ) Consistent results this year, he'll probably get to #5 again soon. Madrid is really his lucky tournament!
 
#36 ·
Kei impressive comeback good fight he simply grinded Nick down. Nick did well but needs to work on his fitness.
he needs to work on his fitness and his maturity level.. those ridiculous temper tantrums are just plain absurd..

kei put on a master class on clutchness in the latter stages of that match.. well done and arigato! :)
 
#6 ·
Very good first two sets. Kyrgios serving lights out, and Kei hanging with him through his excellent baseline play. Each guy probably won the set they played worse in by making a few errors in the respective TB.

Quality dropped in the 3rd set, both of them making some loose errors. But Kei did just enough to get the job done.
 
#8 ·
Good match from both for most of the time, except for Krygios's self-destruction when he was 7-6 6-5 30-15 up, and Nishikori's choke once again when up match points in the third. Kei played well but I doubt this level will be enough to take on the Serb, and even if he does challenge him the fact that he got so nervous serving for the match against Nick and Gasquet doesn't bode well if he gets a chance to close out the world number 1
 
#13 ·
Brave match from both players. Nick served impeccably. up to 80% first serves in at times. Amplified by the closed roof, really made it tough for Kei who needs second serve returns to make any impact. There were no breaks in first two sets, only Kei had BPs in 1st and 2nd sets, but Kei raised his level in the 2nd set TB and took it 7-1.

Third set Kei forced Nick to play and broke early on, then had to fend off 3 breakpoints at *4-2 up and got bit wobbly at the end, from 40-0 going to deuce but serves it out.

Breathtaking tennis for the most part, great shotmaking.

 
#17 ·
Kyrgios' only chance to win this match was in the second set TB or a third set TB. He wasn't breaking Kei, unless Nishikori broke himself. I saw many instances of poor mental strength from Nick, who channeled his inner Tomic at times to take himself out of the match. Nishikori just frustrated Kyrgios by playing consistently, and making his opponent work. And any time Kyrgios has to put effort into a match, you know his chances of winning are going to drop precipitously.

I can understand why many wanted Kyrgios to win though, just to see him play Djokovic. I do think Kyrgios' game can give Novak a bit more trouble than Kei's, but I'm way happier that Nishikori is through. Simply put, until Nick fixes his attitude, he won't have worked hard enough to deserve that opportunity.
 
#41 ·
Simply put, until Nick fixes his attitude, he won't have worked hard enough to deserve that opportunity.
You made some sense but not here. Nick's problem is that he is 21 and not a complete player yet. Not that he sometimes gets frustrated. A player with a bad attitude doesn't win the first set like Nick did. He is young but steadily improving. Keep an eye on him for Wimbeldon
 
#55 ·
It certainly looks that way, but you never know. Nishikori plays Kyrgios with the confidence that he can't lose and his level is always high. Contrast that to when he plays Djokovic and he has no belief whatsoever that he can win more than 3 games in a set.

If Nick can get a win or two against him, perhaps the dynamics of their encounters will change.
 
#22 ·
Now watch Kei bend over to Djokovic.
 
#23 ·
Looks like we have to wait a little longer for the Kyrgios Djokovic match up.
 
#27 ·
Given that emotion used the term self-destruction instead of choke, it was certainly one of the best matches of the year.
 
#45 ·
:lol: every time I read the guy's posts I am just like :facepalm:. Why does he even bother and watch the game really? :confused:
 
#28 ·
This was way closer than anticipated, Kyrgios was serving out of a skyscrapper for most of the match and was actually very close to winning it. I guess the altitude helped his serve do way more damage than it had in Miami when they faced in March. Once Nishikori escaped the 2nd set, the match became his to lose what with his legendary deciding set record and Kyrgios's serving dropping off a bit.

As usual, after being pretty clutch when the match was equal or he was behind, Nishikori got ridiculously tight serving out the match once he found himself in a winning position: after cruising on serve until then, he gave Kyrgios looks at a break back in every game, but fortunately he managed to work his way out of trouble and win.
 
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#32 ·
Happy with the result but also happy that Kyrgios looks like he will become an elite player sooner or later. I hope Kei still has enough left in the tank against Djokovic...or even against Raonic, he's gonna need it. Still, SF is a good result. Not his fault his draws are toxic.
 
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