Kyrgios stuns Medvedev on day of upsets in Montreal

NEW DELHI: Nick Kyrgios produced a serve-and-volley masterclass to topple world number one Daniil Medvedev 6-7(2) 6-4 6-2 for his eighth straight win on a day of upsets at the Canadian Masters in Montreal on Wednesday.

Britain’s Dan Evans stunned fifth seed Andrey Rublev 6-4 6-4 at the ATP 1000 event, while the day kicked off with American Tommy Paul rallying to beat Spanish second seed Carlos Alcaraz 6-7(4) 7-6(7) 6-3.

Jack Draper, ranked number 82 in the world, scored arguably the biggest upset, the Briton rounding off the day with a 7-5 7-6(4) win over Greek third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.

It appeared that top-seeded Russian Medvedev had all the momentum when he eased through the first set tiebreaker and the temperamental Kyrgios smashed a ball into the stratosphere in frustration.

But the Australian regrouped and broke Medvedev’s serve to begin the second set and served his way out of trouble in the following game for a 2-0 lead that he would not relinquish.

The match’s pivotal moment came in the fourth game of the third set when Kyrgios raced from corner to corner to deliver a backhand that the charging Medvedev could not handle, putting the Australian up a service break that sent the sunsoaked fans to their feet. Kyrgios, who won 82% of his first serves, held at love in the final game to seal a place in the last 16. World number four Alcaraz looked to be heading for victory when he bagged the first-set tiebreak before opening up a 4-1 lead in the second when his game inexplicably unravelled. Alcaraz earned a match point during the second set tiebreak but once Paul saved it, the 19-year-old Spaniard’s challenge faded.