Nick Kyrgios battles a shoulder issue to come through his second five-setter at Wimbledon, beating American Brandon Nakashima to move into the quarter-finals; Cristian Garin of Chile up next for the Australian
Last Updated: 04/07/22 5:47pm
Nick Kyrgios reached his first Wimbledon quarter-final since 2014
Nick Kyrgios battled past Brandon Nakashima in five sets to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals but he struggled with a shoulder problem that could jeopardise his chances of going further.
After the drama and recriminations of his clash with Stefanos Tsitsipas, this was a much less tempestuous affair, with Kyrgios largely keeping his behaviour in check on Centre Court to make it into the last eight of a Grand Slam for the first time in seven years.
It became obvious during the first set that all was not well physically but Kyrgios recovered from a set down and then clinched the decider against 20-year-old American Nakashima, winning 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-2) 3-6 6-2 to set up a quarter-final against Chile’s Cristian Garin.
“It wasn’t near my best performance, level wise, but I’m just super, super happy to get through,” Kyrgios said on court.
“I’ve never lost a fifth set here. Honestly, that’s what I was thinking about. I was like, I’ve been here before I’ve done it before and I came through again.”
Asked about facing Garin, he said: “I’m not going to think about that. I’m going to need a glass of wine tonight for sure.”
2014 Wimbledon
2015 Australian Open
2022 Wimbledon
Despite the shoulder issue, there was still some showboating – an underarm serve in only his second service game and a wholly unnecessary between-the-legs shot in the fifth game of the second set – but it soon became clear Kyrgios had other things on his mind.
The 27-year-old began holding his shoulder and grimacing, and a half-hearted service game saw him broken to lose the opening set.
He called the trainer and took a couple of pills after three games of the second set, by which time he was unexpectedly a break ahead thanks to two double faults from his opponent.
Even a poor line call did not prompt anything more than a raised eyebrow from Kyrgios, who began to look more comfortable and raise his service speeds as he levelled the match.
The trainer returned to the court after five games of the third set and this time Kyrgios did take a medical time-out to have his shoulder worked on.
The trainer continued to massage the Australian’s shoulder at changes of ends but he was still serving strongly and moved two sets to one ahead after playing an excellent tie-break.
Nakashima, whose expression had barely changed throughout, stayed right in the match, though, and got his reward in the seventh game of the fourth set with a break of serve.
Kyrgios allowed some emotion to show, ranting at his support camp, and his focus had gone completely as he dropped serve again two games later, rolling in serves, including one underarm effort, and slapping groundstrokes away.
He was switched on again at the start of the decider, though, and, after briefly engaging in words with umpire Nico Helwerth over a line call and being told to “stop moaning” by one spectator, broke the Nakashima serve to lead 2-1.
The crowd were fully behind the Australian when he broke again two games later, and he did not look back as he maintained his record of never having lost a five-set match at Wimbledon.
He has reached the last eight at Grand Slams twice before, on his Wimbledon debut in 2014 and then at the Australian Open the following year, losing at that stage both times.
Nakashima vs Kyrgios: Match Stats
| Nakashima | Match Stats | Kyrgios |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Aces | 35 |
| 9 | Double Faults | 3 |
| 79% | 1st serve win percentage | 78% |
| 51% | 2nd serve win percentage | 49% |
| 3/7 | Break points won | 3/7 |
| 37 | Total winners | 79 |
| 32 | Unforced errors | 42 |
| 142 | Total points won | 147 |
Garin battles from brink of defeat to set up Kyrgios showdown
Cristian Garin won an epic contest against Alex De Minaur
Garin showed amazing tenacity to come from two sets and 3-0 down and save two match points as he beat Australian Alex De Minaur in a hugely entertaining five-set slug fest to reach his first Grand Slam quarter-final.
Garin eventually triumphed 2-6 5-7 7-6 (7-3) 6-4 7-6 (7-6) after four hours 34 minutes of superb tennis that brought a standing ovation from Wimbledon’s packed No 2 Court.
De Minaur, a supreme athlete who does not know the meaning of a lost cause, took the first two sets and led 3-0 in the third but Garin hit back, saved two match points at 4-5 in the fifth and then won the first to 10 final-set tiebreak to set up a last-eight meeting with Kyrgios.
“I just gave everything I have, it was a very tough fight,” said Garin. “I am exhausted. I just gave my best, I went to the net and tried to be aggressive with my serve as well – I think that was the key.”
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