It’ll be an all-Australian battle in the first round of the US Open when Nick Kyrgios looks to power his way past John Millman. Join The Roar for live scores from around 7am (AEST).
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Update: This match was called off due to rain. It will be played as the second match at the Louis Armstrong Stadium on Day 3. This means it will commence at the completion of Elina Svitolina and Katerina Siniakova, who are currently in a second-set tie-breaker.
If Svitolina wins the tie-breaker, Kyrgios and Millman will start shortly after 1am (AEST) on Thursday. If Siniakova wins, they will require a third set and the Kyrgios match will be delayed until around 2am.
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Millman, who still is using his protected rankings spot to qualify for grand slams has struggled to get his form back after a long lay-off with injury.
Missing the Australian Open this year would have stung as would a pair of tough draws at the French Open and Wimbledon when he lost to Roberto Bautista Agut and Rafael Nadal in the first round of each tournament respectively.
Millman took a few weeks off after Wimbledon returning in Atlanta where he got past Frances Tiafoe before losing to Ryan Harrison. From there, he has been stuck on the Challenger circuit, and while he made the final in Lexington, his form since has been appalling with just a single win in his last three matches.
With the 28-year-old struggling to beat opponents in the Challengers, it’s obvious Nick Kyrgios, even the Nick Kyrgios who doesn’t care, is going to be a step too far.
Kyrgios had a great start to the season, but the wheels seemed to have fallen off at the French Open. He had an implosion against Kevin Anderson, then retired in the first round at Wimbledon with injuries flaring up.
Those injuries have kept him pinned to poor form and losses as he retired in the first round at Washington, then got smoked by Alexander Zverev in Montreal.
He seemed to recapture something near his best form in Cincinnati though, going all the way to the final. The injuries seemed to disappear, with Kyrgios finding his way past world No.1 Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer before falling to Grigor Dimitrov in the final.
It’s unfortunate for Kyrgios that he has been listed in the top half of the draw alongside Federer and Nadal. If he was in a very weak looking bottom half and could string two weeks together, anything was possible.
The pair have never played before this meeting and the winner will book a second round match with either Malek Jaziri or Thiago Monteiro.
Prediction
Kyrgios will have far too much in the power department for Millman, but don’t be surprised if Kyrgios brings out the best fighting qualities in Millman. These could be some long, highly-contested sets.
Kyrgios in straight sets.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores of this match from around 7am (AEST) or at the completion of Alison Riske versus Coco Vandeweghe and don’t forget to add a comment below.
Bindy McMinge
Guest
We can only hope that Nick Kyrios will stop playing tennis as soon as possible. Why is he play acting and having temper tantrums when he is supposed to be playing tennis. Roger Federer was a bad boy at a young age and his father soon turned him around and put a stop to his temper tantrums, calling Roger embarrassing. If you really are serious about being a fantastic Australian Tennis Player then work hard everyday, be like Roger let your tennis do the talking and be thankful for the gift that you have been given in life as a professional athlete and the privileged life you lead at the moment. As you can see the big $ dollars that you earn every time you play a match do nothing to fulfill your dreams. You only have to look at all the other Professional Tennis Players to realise that life is not just about MONEY which is your biggest problem. Your a spoilt bratt with a bad attitude and bad parenting. We can only hope that your parents will beat it out of you with that tennis racket!!