Kyrgios Serves Past Ymer To Reach Washington Final

Three years after one of the best tournaments of his career, Nick Kyrgios is back in the Citi Open final.

The 2019 Washington champion battled past Mikael Ymer 7-6(4), 6-3 on Saturday to reach the championship match of the ATP 500 for the second time. He will play top seed Andrey Rublev or Japanese lefty Yoshihito Nishioka for the title.

On Friday, the Australian won two matches and saved five match points in the second of those clashes, in the quarter-finals against Frances Tiafoe. Kyrgios did not have his back up against the wall again, but he did have to work hard to oust Ymer.

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The Swede, who ousted former World No. 1 Andy Murray in the first round, used his speed and defensive skills to great effect throughout the week and did so against on Saturday, finding small openings with sublime backhand passing shots. 

But the match was on Kyrgios’ racquet, and the 27-year-old relied on his big serving and baseline power in key moments to triumph after one hour and 35 minutes. He was not at his flying best, showing consistent frustration throughout the first set, but his serve kept him out of danger as he did not face a break point.

The first set could have gone either way, with the pair tied at 4/4 in the first-set tie-break. In an uncharacteristic Kyrgios rally, which featured plenty of slices between the two, the Australian prevailed after 24 shots to seize the mini break and eventually, the set.

Kyrgios struggled to break through on Ymer's serve until 4-3 in the second set, when he finally earned the match's only break by flicking a forehand half volley from no-man's land crosscourt and out of the reach of the lunging Swede.

Did You Know?
The Wimbledon finalist is up to No. 42 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. If Kyrgios lifts the trophy on Sunday, he will climb to No. 37.