Nick Kyrgios confessed that he had little more to give physically as his nine-match win streak came to an end in the quarter-finals of the ATP Montreal Masters on Friday.
The Wimbledon runner-up lost 7-6, 6-7, 6-1 to Polish powerhouse Hubert Hurkacz after coming to the court with 15 victories from his past 16 matches.
But the Australian had little left to give as his body began to complain.
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“My body hasn’t been feeling great the last week,” he said.
“I was feeling the abdominal (muscle) a little bit before the match. My knees hurt.”
Kyrgios kept the pace of the match brisk as he held his own in the first two sets before finally losing momentum in the third as Hurkacz took control.
The Aussie was annoyed as his opponent left the court for a change of clothes and bathroom break, a delay that ate into his fragile fitness.
During the broadcast, Kyrgios was overheard saying: “We’re not f***ing machines, bro. We can’t just go and stop, go and stop, go and stop.”
He later told reporters: “Obviously when you’re playing and you stop for like five to 10 minutes, it doesn’t help your body.
“My body was so stiff after that, I couldn’t move properly.
“I mean, it’s within the rules. I’m not going to complain. I completely stiffened up.”
World No. 37 Kyrgios, whose performance this week will send him into a seeded US Open spot, added: “I’m not a machine. I’m a human.”
Kyrgios won his first ATP title in three years last week at Washington and shared the doubles crown with Jack Sock, the first man in the event’s 53-year history to take both crowns in the same year.
“My knees were sore, my back was sore… I was trying to stay moving, but I just stiffened up,” Kyrgios said.
“My body hasn’t been feeling great the last week.”
Kyrgios said he needs a pause before returning to the fray next week at Cincinnati in the last major tuneup for the US Open, which begins August 29.
“I feel good, but the US Open is still two and a half weeks away. I have Cincinnati next week. That’s all I’m focusing on,” he said.
“I’m focusing on today, tonight, recovery, food, then just resting, then Cincinnati. That’s where my mind is at.”
Hurkacz overcame 53 winners from Kyrgios to halt the Australian’s nine-match winning streak. The No. 8 seed managed 43 winners of his own in a rapid-fire triumph that put him into his fourth semi-final at the Masters level.
Hurkacz will next face Norway’s fourth-seeded Casper Ruud, who crushed home-nation player Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-1, 6-2, in 74 minutes.
LIVE — Australians will compete for gold medals in at least seven events on day eight of the Commonwealth Games as the nation aims to hold off hosts England in Birmingham.
Australia heads into Friday’s competition sitting on top of the medal tally with 51 golds — nine more than England — as well as 42 silver and 39 bronze.
And it could be plenty more by the close of the day with at least three medals on offer in athletics, two in diving, and one each in lawn bowls and artistic gymnastics.
Follow all the action in Birmingham in our live blog below!
FULL MEDAL TALLY LIVE >
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Australians are also in the hunt for wrestling medals in the women’s 57kg (Irene Symeonidis), men’s 65kg (Mustafa Rezaeifar), and men’s 86kg (Jayden Lawrence), starting with the quarterfinals stages from 7.30pm.
Meanwhile, Australia’s Cedric Dubler headed into the final day of the decathlon sitting in second.
Dubler then won the first decathlon event for the night, the 110m hurdles, with a time of 14.20 — good enough for another 949 points. That has moved him one point into the lead over Lindon Victor.
Also in athletics, Jess Hull will compete in the 1500m heats, while Brooke Buschkuehl will be in action in qualifying for long jump.
Celeste Mucci ran a strong 100m hurdles heat, matching her personal best time of 12.96, which saw her finish third.
Comeback star Michelle Jenneke was up next and comfortably finished second with a time of 12.63 to go through to the end on Sunday night. The time is the fastest she’s ever run the event, although it does not count as an official PB due to big tailwinds.
In the 1500m women’s heats, Abbey Caldwell and Linden Hall have progressed to the final after finishing inside the top four of their race with times of 4:13.59 and 4:14.08 respectively.
Away from the track, Australia’s Hockeyroos will have the chance to win a guaranteed medal when they take on India in the semi-final.
Dennis SCORCHES field to take TT gold | 00:28
You can track the live medal tally for every country here, with key Aussie wins and updates as they happen.
AUSSIES GOING FOR MEDALS ON DAY 8 (all times AEST)
Lawn Bowls
9pm — For mixed pairs B2/B3 finals
diving
8.18pm — men’s synchronized 3m springboard final
3.05am — women’s 1m springboard final (qualifying at 7.05pm)
4.23am — men’s synchronized 10m platform final
Gymnastics – rhythmic
10.30pm — Individual all-around final
Athletics
4.55am — men’s T53/54 1500m final
6.42am—women’s 3000m steeplechase final
7.15pm – 6.27am — men’s decathlon
Hockey
5am — women’s semi-final vs. India
OTHER KEY EVENTS (times AEST)
Athletics
Women’s long jump qualifying — Brooke Buschkuel — 8.40pm
Men’s decathlon — Cedric Dubler, Daniel Golubovic, Alex Diamond — 7.15pm
Round of 16 – Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles – Kaitlyn Ea/Angela Yu (AUS) v Yujia Jin/Jia Ying Crystal Wong (SGP), Hsuan-Yu Wendy Chen/Gronya Somerville (AUS) v Elena Johnson /Chloe Le Tissier (GGY)
TABLE TENNIS (from 6.30pm)
Mixed Doubles Round 3 and Quarterfinals; Men’s Class Semi Finals; Women’s Class Semi Finals; Women’s Singles Round 2; Men’s Doubles Round 3 and Quarterfinals; Women’s Doubles Round 2 – Chunyi Feng/ Yangzi Liu (AUS) v Shanecia Delpesche/Jessica MC Carter (SVG), Minhyung Jee/Jian Fang Lay (AUS) v TBA; Men’s Singles – Dillon Chambers (AUS) v Zhe Yu Clarence Chew (SGP), Finn Luu (AUS) v Sharath Kamal Achanta (IND), Nicholas Lum (AUS) v Javen Choong (MAS)
