Hurkacz snaps Kyrgios’ nine-match winning streak in Montreal to reach semis

Hubert Hurkacz won against Nick Kyrgios 7-6 (4), 6-7 (5), 6-1 on Friday afternoon and will face the winner of the match between Norwegian Casper Ruud, the No 4 seed, and Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, the No 6 seed, in the next round

Hubert Hurkacz celebrates a victory at Montreal || AI/R/P

Tennis Majors

August 12, 2022

Pole Hubert Hurkacz, the No 8 seed, beat Australian Nick Kyrgios 7-6 (4), 6-7 (5), 6-1 to reach the semi-finals of the Montreal Masters at Stade IGA on Friday afternoon.

Hurkacz, ranked No 10, will face Casper Ruud, the No 4 seed, in semi-final. The other semi-final will be Pablo Carreño Busta vs. Daniel Evans.

Fourth Masters 1000 semis for Hurkacz

It was a tight contest through two sets but Kyrgios ran out of gas in the third. The Aussie was broken twice and only won two of 11 second serve points. During changeovers he complained about having to wait five minutes for Hurkacz to take his bathroom break after the second set.

Meanwhile, the Pole took charge and cashed in on his opportunities to sail into his fourth Masters 1000 semi-final.

“I started really well,” he said of the third set. “Nick was maybe a little bit injured, so that definitely hurt his serve, with both of us serving that will it’s a little bit that makes a difference.”

“He’s got one of the best serves in the world. I had opportunities in the first set, break points, break points in the second. Obviously that was pretty crucial because just running on fumes a bit towards the end. I think it’s normal.”
— Nick Kyrgios

Kyrgios on Hurkacz – “He has one of the best serves in the world”

Kyrgios admitted that he was feeling the fatigue on Friday. After crediting the Pole for a magnificent performance, he said he is looking forward to some rest before he tees it up again next week in Cincinnati.

“Just amazing serving,” he said of the world No 10. “He’s got one of the best serves in the world. I had opportunities in the first set, break points, break points in the second. Obviously that was pretty crucial because just running on fumes a bit towards the end. I think it’s normal.

“I feel good. I feel confident. Now I got three days, three or four days, of rest until Cincinnati. I’m going to use that, really capitalize on just rest and recovery.”

Kyrgios – “I stiffened up”

The Aussie said he had trouble keeping his energy after Hurkacz took his bathroom break between the second and third sets, but he didn’t make an issue of Hurkacz’ completely legal trip off the court.

“My body hasn’t been feeling great the last week,” he admitted. “When I’m already warm… I was feeling the abdominal a little bit before the match, my knees hurt. Obviously when you’re playing and you stop playing for like five to 10 minutes, it doesn’t help your body. My body was so stiff after that, I couldn’t move properly. My abdominal was hurting.

I mean, it’s within the rules. I’m not going to complain. But I completely stiffened up.
Nick Kyrgios

“I mean, it’s within the rules. I’m not going to complain. I completely stiffened up. After the second set, like I’m not a machine, I’m a human. My knees were sore, my back was sore, my abdominal was sore. I was trying to stay moving, but I just stiffened up.”

The Pole won against Finn Emil Ruusuvuori (6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-2) and edged out Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas (6-7 (6), 6-2, 7-6 (3)) ahead of his victory.

Earlier in the tournament, Kyrgios, ranked No 37, defeated Argentinian Sebastian Baez (6-4, 6-4), Russian Daniil Medvedev, the top seed (6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-2) and Alex De Minaur (6-2, 6-3).