Top seed Daniil Medvedev beaten by Nick Kyrgios at US Open
Nick Kyrgios had his moment, but was denied by the fourth-ranked Daniil Medvedev.
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In a match he admitted he had watched in real time on an iPad, Nick Kyrgios beat No. 1 seed and defending champion Daniil Medvedev 7-6 (2), 6-7 (2), 7-6 (5), 6-4 at Arthur Ashe Stadium on a day when rain fell in torrents.
The Russian was able to attack the back of the court at times, while Medvedev was limited by an ankle injury he had suffered during his semifinal win over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
“I just love tennis,” Kyrgios said after his match. “I like to go out and play big matches. That’s what I like to do.”
The American, whose injury had seemed to have turned into a good thing during the semifinals, was able to get through the first-round matches in front of a sold-out, capacity crowd at the largest stadium in the Americas.
Kyrgios’s first three-set match included a 6-2, 6-0, 6-2 win over the No. 18 seed, who had lost only two games on serve and broke Kyrgios for the second time in the tournament.
“(On Thursday) I feel a little bit of pain, but I’m starting to believe that maybe you don’t have to worry about this,” Kyrgios said.
Medvedev, on the other hand, was struggling with a left toe injury.
The Russian was unable to serve out the first set when a drop of rain fell during his first service game. On his return, he took out his first-serve ace on a double fault by Kyrgios.
“No. 7 gave me an easy ball, I got out of the way,” Medvedev said. “It was a matter of my first serve. The ball was out of my reach on the baseline, then I put my serve in play.”
The right-hander also hit a drop of rain, and