Nick Kyrgios turned in a dramatically different performance to his opening Wimbledon match as he stormed into the third round — and followed it with a classic call that sparked laughter throughout the venue.
Kyrgios defeated Serbian Filip Krajinović 6-2 6-3 6-1 to book a third-round showdown with Greek superstar Stefanos Tsitsipas — the fourth seed downing Australian Jordan Thompson in his bid for a maiden singles major.
While Kyrgios was far from his best as he staggered to victory against local wildcard Paul Jubb in the first round, he produced three breathtaking sets in his triumph over Krajinović on Thursday night (AEST).
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“I just wanted to remind everyone that I’m pretty good,” Kyrgios said with a blank expression as he was interviewed on court after the match, sending the All England Club crowd into laughter.
“I love that you just said that with a deadpan face, as well,” the interviewer said.
“No smile?”
The brash Australian kept his cool.
“Nah,” he said, refusing to let a grin interrupt his serious demeanour.
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Kyrgios picked apart the gulf in performance between his first and second rounds.
“Obviously nerves. Just getting over the line in that first round was massive. I’ve been playing good tennis over the last month, so I was really surprised (with) the way I played the other day. It wasn’t great,” Kyrgios said.
“But there were a lot of positives. I didn’t play anywhere near my best and got through it, and today obviously I was kind of in my zone. Just great body language, just played well.”
Kyrgios stunned Krajinović with 24 aces and 50 winners.
The 27-year-old also registered a win percentage of 93 on first serves.
“That was one of the best, focused performances I’ve seen from Nick at grand slam tennis,” Todd Woodbridge said on the Stan Sport coverage.
“Gee, he served well today … he just was able to hit all of his spots.”
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