Nick Kyrgios produced a commanding display to see off Robin Haase 6-4 6-4 7-5 and book his place in the third round of Wimbledon 2018.
The Australian, 23, is in excellent form. He reached the semi-finals at Stuttgart and Queen’s and it took top-class players, Roger Federer and Marin Cilic, to beat him at each event.
Kyrgios demonstrated his sharpness from the start against Haase. He raced through his first four service games for the loss of just three points to lead 4-3.
His Dutch opponent had also served well up to that point, but he made two double faults in game eight to give the Australian a chance to break.
Kyrgios seized the opportunity with a classy backhand winner. He then served out the set in style with three aces and a forehand winner.
The World No.18 continued to dominate on serve in the second set. This enabled him to put pressure on Haase’s serve, and he almost earned a break in game three.
The Dutchman saved two break points to hold on that occasion, and then withstood another onslaught from Kyrgios in game seven.
However, poor serving from Haase in game nine cost him the set, as he made it easy for the Australian to break. He then had to watch as the World No.18 served for a two sets to love lead with ease.
Kyrgios keeps his cool in eventful third set
The third set did not follow the pattern of the match at all. Kyrgios dropped his serve for the first time in the match as the players exchanged breaks at the start of the set.
The Australian was then called for a foot fault while serving in the sixth game. Although he held, he calmly asked Umpire James Keothavong to explain why the call was made during the changeover.
With the help of a demonstration, Keothavong explained the decision and Kyrgios seemed satisfied.
The World No.18 soon had another conversation with the umpire. During the Australian’s service game after he had just earned a break to take charge of the set, one of the line judges approached the umpire and complained about an audible obscenity.
Although the swearing was not picked up by the microphones around the court, Kyrgios was warned for the offence. He seemed distracted as he dropped serve.
At the next changeover, he complained to the umpire about being punished when the line judge was the only person who heard him swear.
Despite the obvious distractions, Kyrgios composed himself to hold serve and make it 5-5. He then broke Haase to love impressive style before clinching the match with an emphatic hold.
The Australian’s serving stats are worth highlighting. He won 91% of points behind his first serve, hit 19 aces and saved two of the four break points he faced.
