"Absolutely outrageous": Kyrgios wows in opening game
Nick Kyrgios has wowed fans in his opening game at the Australian Open, beating British player Liam Broady in every set.
The Aussie star entertained the thousands of spectators in Melbourne Park’s John Cain Arena on Tuesday night, ending the match with a score of 6-4 6-4 6-3.
After securing the first set, Kyrgios delivered his customary trick shot - a sneaky underarm serve - with an added layer of difficulty as he served through his legs.
The Aussie’s “absolutely outrageous” serve came shortly after he delivered a 220 km/h hit straight at Broady, with the Brit doing his best to get out of the way.
His moves were quickly praised online, with UK publication The Metro tweeting: “Just an underarm tweener serve from Nick Kyrgios… absolutely outrageous 😲😲.”
Sports reporter Matt Turner wrote: “New year, same Nick. Underhanded serve through the legs in opening service game. Wow.
“Spinning serve through his legs. 1st service game of tournament. Unreal skill and great entertainment.”
British tennis writer Mike Dickson described the match as Kyrgios going “full Harlem Globetrotter on Liam Broady”, while UK-based sports journalist Michael Hincks said the tennis star was “ever the entertainer”.
As the match wore on, a behind-the-back serve flopped and supporters constantly egged Kyrgios on for more underarms, but the champ said in the second set that he would keep it to “one a set”.
Though Broady couldn’t be faulted for his technique, he couldn’t keep up with Kyrgios’ power.
Taking to Instagram after his loss, Broady shared a series of photos from his time in the competition, writing: “Not the result I wanted, but the last few weeks have been unreal. ✌ Australia”.
Kyrgios also took to social media following the match, sharing a clip of his highly-praised serve, a selfie taken with several hyped fans and action shots from the match.
Nick Kyrgios played up the crowd during his first match at the Australian Open, entertaining fans with his trick shots and powerful serves. Image: @k1ngkyrg1os (Instagram)
“Get a mind of your own and become what you wanna be… This is all the support I need 🤞🏽💕,” he captioned one series of photos and clips.
“HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE SHOW 🔒⚡️👑.”
His winning match also comes as the first he’s played this year, after the Canberra player withdrew from the Melbourne Summer Set and was forced to pull out of the Sydney Tennis Classic at the last minute due to his diagnosis with COVID-19.
The excitement follows a quiet 2021 which saw Kyrgios play just eight tournaments.
But his lack of playtime last year definitely didn’t translate to his first 2022 match.
“I served f***ing well today,” he told Jim Courier in his on-court interview. “I don’t know what I’ve done to this crowd because you guys are a zoo now.
“I’m just happy to be here again. Obviously we’ve all had a tough couple of years so just to be back at the Australian Open again - I’m just happy to be back here in front of you guys. Honestly, it’s so much fun.”
Following his Tuesday win, Kyrgios is due to pair with Thanasi Kokkinakis against Alex Bolt and James McCabe in Round 1 of the Men’s Doubles on Wednesday afternoon.
@k1ngkyrg1os (Instagram)