Kyrgios takes down another giant to reach Acapulco final

Nick Kyrgios has continued his giant-killing run at the Mexican Open, defeating big American John Isner to reach the final in Acapulco.

It took more than two hours and 15 minutes for the world No.72 to defeat his ninth-ranked rival 7-5 5-7 7-6 (9-7), setting up a title fight with Alexander Zverev.

“It was an amazing match. I actually was pretty pumped when I got to play him today. I knew there wasn’t gonna be much running,” Kyrgios said.

Far more mellow than in his wins over Rafael Nadal and Stan Wawrinka, Kyrgios faced more boos from the crowd at times but he also turned their week-long battle on its head.

The Aussie called out for Nadal fans to make more noise, then gestured for the crowd to get loud after taking a crucial lead in the first set.

Kyrgios later got involved in a Mexican wave that overran a break and halted play, while he was also quick to remind one screaming Nadal fan that “he’s gone home” courtesy of his victory.

It all added up as the crowd began cheering for Kyrgios as much as they did for Isner.

Battle of the monster serves

Isner sent down 38 aces in his three-set win over Aussie John Millman in the quarter-finals but he received a taste of his own medicine this time.

Kyrgios recorded 25 aces and one double fault to Isner’s 24 and six.

The Australian didn’t restrict himself to cheap points on serve, however, as he sent down numerous big winners and drop shots to pick up where he left off against Nadal and Stan Wawrinka.

He took hold of the deciding tiebreak before facing resistance from Isner, who levelled it at 5-5, 6-6 and 7-7 before Kyrgios won on his third match point.

He will return to the world’s top 50 upon the release of Monday’s updated ATP rankings.

Seventh meeting with German rival looms

Kyrgios will be Zverev’s third Australian opponent of the tournament when they meet in tomorrow’s final.

Zverev, who has also reached the doubles final with his older brother Mischa, won another relatively straightforward match in his semi-final against Cameron Norrie.

The German won 7-6 (7-0) 6-3 and is yet to drop a set in Mexico, accounting for Alexei Popyrin, Spanish veteran David Ferrer and Alex de Minaur earlier in the week.

Kyrgios and Zverev have met six times – all on hard courts – for a 3-3 split, but the German has won their two meetings in 2018.

“This is gonna be an incredibly tough match,” Kyrgios said.

“He’s an amazing player. Our head to head is 4-4, but, since then, he’s done some incredible things. He’s an amazing player, he’s very professional. He ticks all the boxes.

“He’s also a guy I grew up playing juniors with, so we know each other very well. I’m sure it’s gonna be a lot of fun, but he’s an amazing player.”

with agencies