Most people expected Andy Murray - Nick Kyrgios to be a tighter encounter than it was, as in just one hour and 43 minutes the Brit booked himself his place in the final eight at SW19.
Tight first set
Both players held their serve early on with some strong serves. Murray remained in head at 2-1 despite some approaches to the net from Kyrgios, a tactic which would potentially serve him well. Some good, heavy groundstrokes allowed the Australian to level up, before he had a look in on Murray’s serve with some impressive, quick work at the net. Kyrgios looked to save game point with a forehand down the line, but it was just out, letting Murray remain in head, 3-2.
It was the Brit’s turn to have a look-in on his opponent’s serve, but an ace and some huge forehands wrapped up Kyrgios’ service game. Despite the threat of the Australian’s huge game, Murray kept composed and focused, constructing points perfectly to try and reduce Kyrgios’ weapons. A couple of long baseline rallies were won by the Brit as he stayed patient, stretching the Australian around the court. Despite his best efforts, Kyrgios was rock solid on serve, preventing the break. A tight game saw Murray come through to maintain the lead, resulting in a frustrated Kyrgios as he wasn’t being consistent enough on the return.
Both remained incredibly solid on serve, not losing it deep into the first set, but a couple of errors from Kyrgios and a huge backhand winner saw Murray with three set (and break) points. Two were saved with huge, unreturnable serves, but the third was taken after Kyrgios dumped a volley into the net.
Complete control from the Brit as Kyrgios lacks effort
Murray kicked off the second set with a flawless service game to love, imposing his game early with a huge forehand passing shot. Ace number 6 for Kyrgios leveled up at 1-1 and you could feel a sense of urgency to break in the next game, but a huge forehand and a couple of good passes at the net kept the Brit in front.
Some very poor shot selections from Kyrgios put him in danger, and Murray totally capitalised on the situation, forcing him out of his comfort zone to break serve for 3-1. Errors crept into the Australian’s game as he started to fall apart. He was rushing his points and was mentally not there at all, gifting a break to Murray and an opportunity for him to serve for the second set, 5-1. Kyrgios lacked any effort to rectify this, and with an ace, Murray served out the set, 6-1.
Murray finishes strong
Kyrgios appeared a little more focused in this third set, holding to kick it off, but Murray was both having the right ideas for his shots and executing them perfectly. A superb lob followed by a light dropshot from the British number one got him the hold, and deep, dominant groundstrokes moved the Australian around the court, forcing him wide, long, and into the net. Kyrgios looked like a man that didn’t want to be there, whilst Murray was the epitome of calm. The Brit broke serve and was up by two sets and a break, giving him a firm hold on this match.
Murray consolidated the break in complete control, and Kyrgios was able to get on the board twice with a few good shots and serves, but he wasn’t able to make any impression on the Brit’s serve. There’s no doubt that he has the right shots to provide more resistance to Murray, but his effort was far too inconsistent to provide any danger, as he wasn’t even close to playing to the best of his ability. Murray, on the other hand, was incredibly calm and focused throughout the match.
Murray had been particularly impressive on his passing winners in this match, scoring another to hold serve and put himself a game away from another quarterfinal here at Wimbledon. It wasn’t long before the Brit got to his first match point, but it was saved with a volley from the Australian. An ace got Kyrgios a game point opportunity, but an unforced error and a sensational passing shot from Murray let him capture his second match point. However, Kyrgios forced Murray to try and serve the match out.
Just minutes later, with an ace, Andy Murray served out it out, booking himself a place in the quarterfinals, 7-5, 6-1, 6-4. Jo Wilfried Tsonga awaits, after coming through his match after Richard Gasquet retired in the first set due to injury.