Tokyo — Nick Kyrgios withdrew from the Japan Open on Friday, shortly prior to his quarterfinal match, citing a painful left knee.
The unpredictable Australian tennis superstar was slated to face the third-seeded American Taylor Fritz, who will now move to the quarterfinals.
Kyrgios, ranked no. 20 in the world, stated during a match-time press conference that he had “played incredible tennis all year,” but that it had been physically draining.
“I was battling with a knee ailment around the time of the US Open, and when I returned home, I didn’t take nearly enough time off. “I immediately resumed training,” stated the 27-year-old.
“It’s devastating. When the body fails, it is not a pleasant experience.
Kyrgios will now return to Australia, although he stated that he still intends to compete in multiple events leading up to the Australian Open in January, and that he will return to the Japanese tournament next year.
Kyrgios, who defeated Poland’s Kamil Majchrzak 3-6 6-2 6-2 in the second round on Thursday, stated that his knee had “not really” been a problem in his singles or doubles matches, but that it had felt “quite sore” when warming up on Friday.
“In this scenario, it’s likely overloaded rather than insufficient fitness,” he added.
It’s almost as if they’re too eager to get on the court, and perhaps they’ve trained too much.
Solid victory for Tiafoe
Earlier on Friday, a jet-lagged Frances Tiafoe advanced to the semifinals in straight sets, defeating Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic 6-0 6-4 with an ace in each set.
On Saturday, the fourth-seeded American will face South Korea’s unseeded Kwon Soon-woo, while Fritz will face either Canada’s Denis Shapovalov or Croatia’s Borna Coric.
Tiafoe, who defeated Rafael Nadal to advance to his first Grand Slam semifinal at the US Open, stated that he was “solid from the start” of the 71-minute quarterfinal.
“Today’s tennis was outstanding,” he stated. “I was going quite efficiently. From the back of the court, I hit the ball quite well.
The world’s No. 19 player, a 24-year-old American, stated that he had struggled to adjust to the Tokyo time zone.
“I’ve been quite ill and jet-lagged, so I’ve likely been sleeping and waking up very early,” he explained.
Kwon defeated Spaniard Pedro Martinez 6-3, 6-0, and Tiafoe stated that it would be “great” to play the South Korean, whom he met at the Tokyo Olympics.
“Kwon is a fantastic player. This week he’s been playing exceptionally well, so it’ll be fun to play him. We sometimes practice in Florida.”
Since surprising Nadal at Flushing Meadows and playing a starring role at the Laver Cup in London, where his Rest of the World Team defeated Europe for the first time in the competition’s history, Tiafoe has been in the spotlight.
He has expressed his desire to motivate a new generation of black tennis players.