"I didn't play anywhere near my best" - Kyrgios happy to get win on a bad day
ATP
Nick Kyrgios was happy to win his semi-final match at the 2022 Citi Open in Washington despite not playing his best tennis.
For the first time in his career, Kyrgios will play in back-to-back finals. The 27-year-old Australian hadn't played since he reached the Wimbledon final, and the first event he entered could end with a title for him.
Moreover, it's also a tournament where he triumphed the last time, so it seems to be a lucky place for Kyrgios. He will also play the doubles final in Washington, and he will hope to leave the capital with two trophies in his bag.
In the semi-finals of the singles tournament, the Australian bested Mikael Ymer 7-6(4), 6-3. Although he won in straight sets, Kyrgios felt like he didn't play his best tennis, so he was happy to get through, as he revealed in his on-court interview.
"Honestly, I didn't play anywhere near my best tennis today, and I don't know. The role was reversed the past couple of matches I've been on paper, rankings-wise, the underdog in my past couple of matches, but today I definitely felt like the favorite."
One advantage that Kyrgios has over other players is his serve. He blasted ten aces against Ymer, which significantly helped him to avoid getting in trouble, even though he didn't play at his best.
"I served pretty solid. Obviously, my winning percentage behind my first serve would have been high, but from the back of the court, I didn't play well at all."
"The difference was he stands on the fast and he makes you play that extra ball. He's an incredible athlete, and I really wasn't expecting him to be that fast."
Kyrgios also recognized Ymer's qualities and admitted that the next time he plays against the Swedish player, he will need to come up with a different tactic.
"Maybe next time I might have a couple of different tactics when I play him, maybe not to try and out rally him, maybe come forward a little bit more. But it was a tough-fought semi-final and I'm just happy to be in the final once again."
