Top
Nick Kyrgios ensured there will be home interest in the Brisbane International final by ending Grigor DimitrovŠ—Ès winning run

Kyrgios gets the better of Dimitrov


 

Originally published on 06/01/18 00:00

The Australian No.1 recorded a 3-6 6-1 6-4 victory over the defending champion in an entertaining affair played in front of a capacity crowd inside the Pat Rafter arena.

Kyrgios’ temperament is often called into question, particularly when he falls behind, but his latest success is the third time in a row he has rallied from a set down and emerged the winner.

"I hadn't beaten him [Dimitrov] before,” said Kyrgios. “Going into today, I knew that I was going to do something a little different. I was going to kind of just not give him too much rhythm. Come in a lot, be super aggressive off my returns and just serve pretty much anywhere."

"He played a pretty solid first set. I played a pretty loose game to get broken – and pretty much from then on, I felt pretty in control of the match."

Kyrgios, the first Aussie to reach the final in Brisbane since Lleyton Hewitt in 2014, will go in search of a first title in 15 months on Sunday.

In the first semi-final, Ryan Harrison crushed any hopes of an all-Australian championship match by defeating Alex de Minaur 4-6 7-6(5) 6-4 in a bruising encounter.

The American recovered from a precarious position in the second set tiebreak before denying his youthful opponent in a tense decider. “This year, I want to leave it all on the court every time I play. I feel like if I do that, I'll be improving,” said Harrison, now bidding for a second ATP title.

“I didn't have a whole lot of pressure on myself. I was just trying to play as hard as I could and I'm in the final.”

De Minaur, a wildcard entry, made headlines by defeating former world No.3, Milos Raonic, earlier this week. The 18-year-old from Sydney is making rapid progress, and he will move inside the Top 170 in the rankings on Monday.

Now get the WORLD’S BEST TENNIS MAGAZINE here


Tim Farthing, Tennishead Editorial Director & Owner, has been a huge tennis fan his whole life. He's a tennis journalist and entrepreneur as well as playing tennis to a national standard. He also helps manage his local club and volunteers for his local tennis organisation. He's a specialist in content about the administration of professional tennis and tennis coaching for all levels.