Kyrgios After Nadal Loss: 'I Know What I'm Capable Of'
There was plenty of chatter leading into the second round Wimbledon match between Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios. And the battle certainly lived up to the hype, with Nadal squeaking by the talented Aussie in four tight sets that featured thrilling rallies and shotmaking throughout.
The difference was the start of the tie-breaks in the third and fourth sets, with Nadal seizing early leads and never looking back. The slightest dips in level from Kyrgios cost him in those moments, and he said afterwards that it’s Nadal’s unrelenting focus that he admires most about the Spaniard’s game.
“I think just his ability, he plays every point. He doesn't take one point off. I feel like we're the polar opposites. I struggle so hard to just play every point with a routine, have the same patterns,” Kyrgios said. “His 1-2 punch, his first serve and his first forehand, is probably the best 1-2 punch in the world, apart from Federer. His ability to bring it every day and compete, it's special. It's not easy.”
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Kyrgios has proven time and time again that he has the game to compete with the very best players in the sport. The 2014 Wimbledon quarter-finalist owns at least one victory against each member of the Big Four — Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. So it was no surprise that once he found his footing after conceding an early break, that he was able to go blow-for-blow with the legendary Spaniard.
“I know what I'm capable of. Just depends. I'm a great tennis player,” Kyrgios said. “There's a lot of things I need to improve on to get to that level that Rafa brings, Novak, Roger have been doing for so long. Just depends how bad I want it.”
Kyrgios may throw in some unorthodox shots — many times successfully — that other players almost never attempt, whether those include tweeners, underhand serves, and so on. But there's never a doubt in the Aussie's mind when he steps on the court that if he is firing, he has a chance.
“I'm still going out there today and able to bring a level that can compete with one of the world's best and have chances to the win the match,” Kyrgios said. “I'm very confident when I'm on the court. Maybe there are a couple things I could do better. I like the way I do things.”
An interesting tactical advantage Kyrgios had previously had in their six matches was using his concise two-handed backhand return to neutralise Nadal's serve on many occasions. But Nadal changed things up on Thursday.
“I thought I started a little slow, but I thought he played really well today. I knew his game plan, I got onto it pretty quickly,” Kyrgios said. “He directed most of his serves to my forehand. He hasn't really done that in the past. It's definitely my weaker return. He was definitely trying to stay away from my backhand return a lot.”
Kyrgios impressively struck 58 winners to only 27 unforced errors against Nadal, but he was unable to muster a break point across the final two sets.
In the end, Kyrgios playing well was simply not good enough against Nadal, a two-time Wimbledon champion. The World No. 2 was more consistent in the biggest moments, and that is what sent him through to set a third-round match against former World No. 5 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
“I thought just on big points he played well. Hit his forehand extremely well. When Rafa plays well, he hits his forehand [down the] line extremely well. I thought today he was on fire with that shot. Every time he redirected, he was hitting balls just within the line,” Kyrgios said. “I thought it was a high-level match. Two tie-breaks. I played a couple loose points here or there. That's all it takes against a player like that. He was just too good today.”