Australia’s brightest hope at next week’s US Open has been dealt the toughest of draws.
Ranked No37 in the world, Nick Kyrgios has drawn in-form third seed Andy Murray, an opponent who has dispatched him in straight sets in all three of their prior meetings.
The pair’s path to the first round match-up could not be more different, with Murray coming off a win over world No1 Novak Djokovic in the final of Montreal’s Rogers Cup and Kyrgios suffering a second round defeat while courting controversy for his mid-match sledge of Stan Wawrinka.
The draw has also been unkind to 19-year-old Thanasi Kokkinakis, who faces 12th seed Richard Gasquet, and 21-year-old Daria Gavrilova, who will take on third seed Maria Sharapova.
Top-ranked Australian woman Sam Stosur fared better, drawing 73rd-ranked Timea Babos of Hungary. Seeded 22nd, Stosur lost to Babos last week in Cincinatti but is a past champion at Flushing Meadows and has a relatively forgiving draw until a potential fourth round meeting with fourth seed Caroline Wozniacki.
If she can make it past 26th seeded Flavia Panetta in the first round, compatriot Jarmila Gajdosova may lie in Stosur’s path, with the pair in the same quarter of the draw.
Of the other Australian women, Western Australia’s Casey Dellacqua is pitted against a qualifier, and world No62 Ajla Tomljanovic will play 28-year-old Italian Karin Knapp in the first round. Tomljanovic comes into the event in good form having made the quarterfinals in Stanford earlier this month, but lost to Knapp in a close contest in Hobart earlier this year.
Of the remaining men, big serving Sam Groth has drawn dangerman Alexandr Dolgopolov, who showed strong form to stretch Djokovic to three sets in Cincinnati and has been as high as No13 in the world.
Up first for New South Welshman James Duckworth is Korea’s Hyeon Chung, while Queenslander John Millman, who’s raced back into the top 100 following strong showings at Wimbledon and on the Challenger circuit, will face Ukrainian veteran Sergiy Stakhovsky.
Top-ranked Aussie in the men’s draw, 24th seed Bernard Tomic, was placed against world number 94 Bosnian Damir Dzumhur, in one of the most favourable match ups for our male contingent. With several young players in, or just outside of, the ATP top 50, hopes for a strong men’s showing at the final Grand Slam of the year were high.
But with so much expectation resting on the shoulders of 19-year-old Kokkinakis and 20-year-old Kyrgios, the pairs’ horror draws have damaged those hopes.
Kokkinakis, who has wins this year over seeded players Jeremy Chardy, Fabio Fognini and Bernard Tomic, is considered a future top-10 player by many, but has been in Kyrgios’ shadow over the past few years thanks to his training mate’s high profile wins over the likes of Rafael Nadal, and more recently his vitriolic comments on court.
Kyrgios was docked a six-month suspended fine of US$25,000 and 28-day suspension by the ATP for “aggravated behaviour” after comments made during his second round match against Stan Wawrinka at the Rogers Cup.
Kyrgios’ results have suffered over the past six months, in the midst of a string of controversies, including allegations of tanking at Wimbledon and comments he made at a recent Davis Cup tie.
The Aussie has been the subject of widespread praise since beating Nadal at last year’s Wimbledon, including a recent assessment from Mats Wilander in which the legend predicted Kyrgios would win Wimbledon and possibly be “the greatest player of all time once his career is over”.
To stand any chance of upsetting Murray, whose strong returning game has nullified his younger opponent’s main weapon – a booming serve – in previous match-ups, Kyrgios will need to play the level of tennis which has seen him upset top 10 players, as well as maintain his composure.
The draw has also thrown up some tough challenges for the game’s biggest names, with Serena Williams pitted against one of the toughest fields of her Grand Slam career, Rafael Nadal on course for a potential quarterfinal show down with top seed Novak Djokovic, and five-time US Open champion Roger Federer set to meet 2012 winner Murray in the semifinals of the lower half of the draw.
