Kyrgios cruises in first match since Wimbledon

WASHINGTON: Wimbledon runner-up Nick Kyrgios won in his first match since making his Grand Slam final debut, ripping American Marcos Giron 6-3, 6-2 on Tuesday at the ATP and WTA Washington Open.

The 27-year-old Australian fired 12 aces and saved the lone break point he faced to oust Giron in 59 minutes for a triumphant return at the US Open hardcourt tune-up.

After a 3-3 start, Kyrgios won nine of the last 11 games for the victory despite memories of a poor effort in a first-round exit last year during “a dark time in my life.”

“I just really wanted to force myself to have high energy and pull out a performance,” Kyrgios said. “My confidence was a bit low coming out just because just being on that court again. I got disgraced last year first round, and it was tough to stomach.

“I’m proud of my performance today. It wasn’t easy.”

World number 63 Kyrgios, whose most recent title came at Washington in 2019, booked a second-round match against US 14th seed Tommy Paul.

Kyrgios said he has struggled to move on after his Wimbledon final loss to Novak Djokovic last month.

“That match hurts,” Kyrgios said. “To have that opportunity and come up short wasn’t easy for me to stomach.