- Nick Kyrgios won the longest match of his career on Saturday, defeating Russia’s Karen Khachanov 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (6), 6-7 (7), 7-6 (10-8) at the Australian Open.
- The win sets him up for a fourth-round faceoff against Rafael Nadal on Monday.
- However, after the five-set drama, which took nearly four and a half hours, he said: “I’m not even thinking about that right now. I’m just thinking about my legs, getting in an ice bath and getting some food or something.”
- Kyrgios added: “That’s definitely one of the best wins of my career, I think. It was insane.”
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Nick Kyrgios won the longest match of his life on Saturday, then said all he was thinking about was “getting some food or something.”
The normally outspoken Australian was suprisingly speechless after defeating Russia’s Karen Khachanov 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (6), 6-7 (7), 7-6 (10-8) at his home Australian Open, saying in the on-court post-match interview: “I don’t even know what to say right now. That was insane.”
The five-set drama at Melbourne Arena, which reached nearly four and a half hours and was riddled with unruly fan behavour including a brawl before the match even started, saw the 24-year-old take the first set despite suffering with a left buttock injury, only to suffer another injury – this time with his hand – in the fourth.
He receieved a time violation after he wouldn’t let the ball kid touch his towel because he was bleeding, then yelled at the umpire: “Are you stupid? Can you not see? Do your job!” before going on to lose the set.
Ultimately, though, Kyrgios won the final set on a tie-break, having missed match points in the third and fourth sets.
"This is just epic man, I don't even know what's going on," Kyrgios said after the match, repeatedly thanking his team and the crowd for their vocal support throughout.
"Honestly, my legs feel about 40 kilos each," he said.
"That's definitely one of the best wins of my career, I think. It was insane. You guys are unreal."
Kyrgios will now take on Rafael Nadal at in the fourth round of the tournament at the Rod Laver Arena on Monday, having already faced the Grand Slam champion seven times already, winning on three occasions.
However, in regards to his upcoming match, Kyrgios said: "I'm not even thinking about that right now. I'm just thinking about my legs, getting in an ice bath and getting some food or something."
You can watch the full interview here:
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