Nick Kyrgios stuns Daniil Medvedev to reach US Open Quarter Finals

Nick Kyrgios’ spectacular form in 2022 continued in New York as the Australian beat the defending US Open champion Daniil Medvedev 7-6 (11), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the fourth round at Flushing Meadows. Kyrgios triumphed in two hours and 53 minutes against the world number one with a stunning performance in front of a capacity crowd at the Arthur Ashe Stadium to reach his first quarter-final at the US Open.

Kyrgios entered the US Open in the form of his life, taking the most victories on the tour since Roland Garros in June – including a second-round win against Medvedev in Montreal in August. The 27-year-old carried that momentum into Sunday’s fourth-round matchup versus the Russian as Kyrgios broke first to take a 4-2 lead in the opening set. The Russian, however, broke back instantly to send the first set to a tiebreaker.

Both players spurned their first three set points in the tiebreak, but Kyrgios eventually made the difference with an audacious drop shot to take a 1-0 lead. The world number one hit back in the second set, cruising ahead to a 5-1 lead with a double break and levelling the scores at one apiece with a crucial hold at 5-3.

Kyrgios’ dominance resumed in the third set. Despite costing himself a break point opportunity by going on the other side of the net and playing a foul shot, the Australian broke Medvedev in his next service game to take a 3-1 lead. The Wimbledon finalist followed that break with a couple of unrelenting service games to restore his lead at two sets to one.

Kyrgios sustained this high level in the fourth set, taking an early break and outmatching his opponent from the baseline before eventually sealing the victory with his 21^st ace of the night.

Kyrgios will now play another Russian, Karen Khachanov, in the quarter-final at Flushing Meadows, and following his trip to the Wimbledon final earlier this year, the 23rd seed has a golden opportunity to make it to the second Grand Slam final of his career at the US Open.

Medvedev, meanwhile, is denied an opportunity to win his second US Open title in a row. With this defeat, the Russian will also lose his top spot in the rankings as Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, or Casper Ruud will be number one next week, depending on how the rest of the action unfolds at the Billie Jean King Tennis Centre in New York.