The fairytale run of Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios is going all the way to the final, with the pair defeating the third-seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 in a tense semi-final.
The ‘Special Ks’ have captured the hearts of the casual sporting crowd in a way we’ve never seen with doubles tennis, and in terms of crowd behaviour, perhaps never in the sport’s history.
Much was made of the decision to move the semi-final from Kia Arena, where a raucous and boisterous audience had given them energy to feed off, to the bigger, but more refined Rod Laver Arena.
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Despite the crowd being right behind the pair, it did feel more sanitised than previous matches – like your favourite indie band playing a stadium show for the first time.
“I’ve played a lot of singles matches around the globe with amazing atmospheres, but this week with Thanasi, playing in front of you, nothing beats this,” Kyrgios said afterwards.
“This is insane.”
Kokkinakis added that he didn’t thing they’d have had success like this in another venue, with a more subdued crowd.
“Playing in front of you guys brings out the best – I don’t know if we would have had this result anywhere else,” he said.
They’ll now move on to play Matt Ebden and Max Purcell in an all-Australian final.
“They are great players and we will not take them lightly,” Kyrgios said.
“They are obviously playing some good tennis, it is the final – I am looking forward to it.”
While the Rod Laver Arena noise level didn’t always equal earlier matches on Kia Arena, it was anything but quiet late in a tense first set, a huge roar of relief coming as they secured a mini-break in the tiebreaker.
Neither duo gave an inch in the first set, but the Ks were presented with three break points on Granollers’ first service game of the second, but couldn’t convert any of them as the crowd fell into a hushed silence.
But when Kokkinakis smoked a return right back where it came from to convert a fourth break point of the game, the crowd spurred into life once more.
Just when it seemed they would cruise to the finish line, drama came in the form of a tiny bluetooth receiver clipped to the top of the net.
Kyrgios was audibly frustrated with two big serves that were ruled lets, insiting to the umpire that neither had gone near the tape.
It’s not the first time Kyrgios has taken issue with the net cord technology, famously getting into an argument with the umpire during his win over Ugo Humbert at last year’s Open.
They saved two break points before succumbing to a third, and Kyrgios received a warning for smashing his racquet into the ground.
We’ve seen meltdowns impact his performance after a setback like that before – but not with his mate by his side in one of the biggest matches of their lives.
Granollers and Zeballos consolidated their break before Kokkinakis held – and at 0-30 on Granollers’ serve, there was an air of inevitability.
Three points later, the match was over – with a gorgeous backhand lob from Kokkinakis sealing the deal.
The crowd exploded into a cacophony of cheers and ‘Siuuuus’ as Kyrgios sat and took it all in.
For so long the villain, now alongside his best friend in the sport, he has a chance to be the hero in a way few would have ever thought.
He’s been vocal about the state of tennis, the way it’s covered and how it can be a lot more fun than he currently perceives it to be – but are moments like this the future?
Kyrgios was blunt when asked as much.
“It has to be.”
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