After flying through the first round, Nick Kyrgios faces Italian Andreas Seppi. Can the Australian continue his run or will Seppi put an end to world No.13’s campaign? Join The Roar from around 6pm (AEDT) for live scores and coverage.
Kyrgios got off to a strong start against Gastao Elias, defeating him in straight sets 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 after some strong serving and a number of unforced errors by Elias.
It was his first official ATP match since being suspended in Shanghai and the Australian looks in good shape having changed his fitness and diet regime over the off-season with a new trainer in Matt James.
This was reflected in his strong showings at the Hopman Cup as well as in his win over Rafael Nadal at a Fast4 exhibition in Sydney.
Kyrgios overcame a knee injury and is in brilliant form, sighting a maiden grand slam title having previously reached the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park in 2015.
The Australian faces a tough path, especially given he is still without a coach after parting ways with Josh Eagle and Todd Larkham.
Kyrgios will need to play to his strengths and continue using his strong serve to move through to the third round.
Andreas Seppi had a tough 2016, falling out of form at the back end of the year, but always puts up a tough challenge.
He played his first official match of 2017 against Paul-Henri Mathieu of France, fending him off in a close four-set match 6-4, 7-6, 6-7, 7-5 to book his place against Kyrgios in the second round.
It will be a much tougher task for the Italian who will need to earn some early breaks if he is to be in with a chance against one of the best young players on the ATP Tour.
Kyrgios and Seppi have played each other twice, both meetings coming on hard court and resulting in a Kyrgios victory.
Their most recent encounter came at the 2015 Australian Open, Kyrgios prevailing in a fourth round thriller 5-7, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6, 8-6.
The winner will take on either Diego Schwartzman or Steve Darcis in the third round.
Prediction
Nick Kyrgios will push past Seppi with his strong serve, flying through to the third round in straight sets.
Kyrgios in straight sets.
Join The Roar from around 6pm (AEDT) for live coverage following the completion of Peng Shuai vs Eugenie Bouchard and be sure to drop a comment in the box below if you’re watching the match.
anon
Guest
He's a man of no character. His parents need a good hard look at themselves. They should be embarrassed.
anon
Guest
Time the ATP to conduct a full investigation into Kyrgios's links to organised crime. If this was an Eastern European and not an Australian, we would be demanding an inquiry into systematic match fixing. He's been routinely throwing matches for years. It's a joke. What would the odds have been for the match to go 5 sets when Kyrgios was up 2 sets to nil. Enormous. Australians aren't immune to match fixing. Two of Australia's greatest cricket players (Shane Warne and Mark Waugh) were in the pockets of Indian bookmakers. Essendon was guilty of the worst example of systematic doping in the world's history of professional team sport. You cannot give this guy the benefit of the doubt any more. He was effectively rubbed out of the game last year for throwing a match. The ATP need to throw the book at him now if they are serious about eliminating match fixing. We've seen Oliver Anderson have his up and coming career destroyed for doing far less than Kyrgios has done over the last few years.
Felix
Guest
This, is spot on. At 21 Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth were major winners who dedicate their life to their craft. Nick just doesn't give a toss and quite frankly I hope he gives it away to play basketball and Xbox with his mates. The fact he doesn't have a coach sums him up for me - no desire to take it to the next level and improve himself.
Maca
Guest
Nick If you don't have anymore love gor the game then leave the sport. You are just breaking kids hearts who idolise you because you easily give in to your tantrums. Get a coach and I guess you should listen to other people becausr I think you can't do it alone Maca
Torchbearer
Guest
At 21- I was running an Emergency X-ray department in a major hospital.....in an earlier time 21 year olds had spent 4 years in the trenches on the Western Front. Let's not pretend a 21 year old is a child.
Torchbearer
Guest
Hooray- whatever the hell Kyrgios was doing, it wasn't playing tennis.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
Only watched the last set but the body language of Nick Kyrgios was terrible. Dragged himself around the court like the walking dead. The bloke is a soft as butter when it comes to a scrap. No fight, no energy, no enthusiasm. Seppi just had to hang in there and eventually Kyrgios handed the match to him. Disappointing is an understatement. Not sure what to think about Kyrgios. I'm starting to believe he doesn't like tennis or doesn't want to work as hard as players like Federer, Jokavic, Murray and Nadal to rise to the top. At least Aussie players of the past like Hewitt, Rafter and Cash gave everything when they played.
Mango Jack
Guest
Good. NK does not deserve to win a major, and he won't, unless he grows up. Not even trying in the end and muttering excuses, no doubt blaming his support staff. What a disgrace.
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
That concludes The Roar’s coverage of Nick Kyrgios vs Andreas Seppi. I'll be back tomorrow from 6:30pm (AEDT) for live coverage of Daria Gavrilova vs Ana Konjuh. Scott Pryde is currently live with Bernard Tomic vs Victor Estrella Burgos. You can follow all the action here. Thanks for following along.
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
DAY 4 KEY MATCHUPS Gilles Muller vs Milos Raonic [3] Denis Istomin vs Novak Djokovic [2] Ivo Karlovic [20] vs Andrew Whittington (AUS) Ana Konjuh vs Daria Gavrilova (AUS) [22] Lucie Safarova vs Serena Williams [2] Marcos Baghdatis vs Rafael Nadal [9] Dominic Thiem [8] vs Jordan Thompson (AUS)
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
AROUND THE GROUNDS It has been a mixed day for Australians in both singles and doubles. Ash Barty is through to the third round while Jaimee Fourlis and Alex De Minaur have fallen to seeded players. Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated Jaimee Fourlis (AUS) 6-2, 6-1 Ashleigh Barty (AUS) defeated Shelby Rogers 7-5, 6-1 Andreas Seppi defeated Nick Kyrgios (AUS) 1-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-2, 10-8 Sam Querrey defeated Alex De Minaur (AUS) 7-6, 6-0, 6-1 D.Ingolt/F.Mergea defeated L.Saville (AUS)/J.Thompson (AUS) 6-2, 7-5 E.Hozumi/M.Kato defeated E.Perez (AUS)/O.Tjandramulia (AUS) 7-6, 7-6 A.Bolt (AUS)/B.Mousley (AUS) defeated R.Haase/F.Mayer 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 A.Cornet/M.Linette defeated D.Jurak/An.Rodionova (AUS) 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 H.Kontinen/J.Peers (AUS) defeated S.Gonzalez/D.Marreo 7-6, 6-4 L.Huber/M.Sanchez defeated M.Brengle/Ar.Rodionova (AUS) 7-6, 6-2 S.Errani/K.Flipkens defeated D.Gavrilova (AUS)/D.Kasatkina 6-2, 6-4 M.Polmans (AUS)/A.Whittington (AUS) defeated L.Yen-Hsun/J.Vesely 6-3, 6-2 S.Stosur (AUS)/Z.Shuai defeated K.Birrell (AUS)/P.Hon (AUS) 6-7, 6-4, 6-4 L.Davis/M.Moulton-Levy defeated D.Aiava (AUS)/A.Smith (AUS) 6-4, 6-4 M.Barton (AUS)/M.Ebden (AUS) defeated V.Pospisil/R.Stepanek 6-2, 6-4
Jock Cornet
Guest
Pea heart
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
FINAL Aces: 28 - 16 Double Faults: 8 - 4 First Serve %: 118/171 (69%) - 85/149 (57%) Break Points Won: 3/10 (30%) - 5/12 (42%) Winners: 57 - 57 Unforced Errors: 68 - 36 Total Points Won: 158 - 162 Nick Kyrgios 6 7 4 2 8 Andreas Seppi 1 6 6 6 10
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
Andreas Seppi: "It was a tough match, I didn't start well in the first set, couldn't get into the rhythm. But I just kept on fighting and I think I did very well in the moments at the end. I was concentrating on my game, it is obviously tough if you are not fit, it worked out very good for me. He played a few good points, especially the first one - it was a tweener - I didn't expect that. It was important to keep on going and keep on focusing. It's always great playing in such an atmosphere. I'm enjoying playing on big courts and it was nice to get the win today."
Scott Pryde
Expert
Cheers for the call Riley.
Scott Pryde
Expert
I like a good five-set tennis match as much as the next bloke, but that was rubbish from Kyrgios. To go from 2 sets up to losing isn't good enough, especially the way he did it.
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
Yup. He wasn't even trying for parts of that.
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
All credit to Seppi, he was fantastic! Kyrgios though ... well, he was disappointing.
Riley Pettigrew
Roar Guru
FINAL That is the end of Nick Kyrgios' tournament, Andreas Seppi defeating him in a five set thriller. Nick Kyrgios 6 7 4 2 8 Andreas Seppi 1 6 6 6 10
Joel Erickson
Roar Guru
He got what he deserved.