Roger Federer prepares to take on Nick Kyrgios for place in Indian Wells semi-finals
Kyrgios' skill takes centre stage at the ATP Indian Wells Masters
Friday 17 March 2017 18:10, UK
Roger Federer says his Indian Wells quarter-final opponent Nick Kyrgios has "arrived on the scene" after a string of impressive displays.
Kyrgios's back-to-back victories over Novak Djokovic has put the explosive Australian in the spotlight for all the right reasons.
The 21-year-old, whose petulant antics have often overshadowed his immense skill, overpowered three-time defending champion Djokovic to book a Friday highly-anticipated quarter-final showdown with Federer.
The 6-4 7-6 (7-4) triumph over Djokovic ended his 19-match winning streak at the desert tournament and came on the heels of his quarter-final triumph over Djokovic in Acapulco.
Kyrgios is the first player in eight years to beat Djokovic in back-to-back hard court tournaments.
"I'm very impressed him taking out Novak, back-to-back weeks, on Novak's best surface," Federer said. "It goes a long way for all the players - not that he needed to prove his point - but I think now he has really arrived on the scene.
"He's beaten all the guys: Novak, myself, Rafa (Nadal). It's very impressive."
Kyrgios has already recorded impressive victories over Djokovic, Federer, Nadal and Stan Wawrinka, and he now gets another crack at Federer with the Australian feeling good about himself after a difficult 2016.
"I was in a pretty dark place," he admitted. "Even I was at 13 [in the world] last year, but I wasn't in a good place mentally at all. I was beating myself down, and I just wasn't in a good place.
"[Now] I'm just trying to stay happy and just try and enjoy my tennis a little bit."
Federer, who added another chapter to a storied rivalry with Rafa Nadal with an epic Australian Open triumph in January, dismantled the Spaniard 6-2 6-3, to reach the last eight.
The 35-year-old Swiss has only had one previous meeting with Kyrgios at the Madrid Masters in 2015 - an unforgettable match which the Australian won, 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (14-12).
Fourth seed from Japan, Kei Nishikori, takes on American Jack Sock in the day's first quarter-final clash.
In the women's semi-finals, Kristina Mladenovic takes on Elena Vesnina while third-ranked Karolina Pliskova faces Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares are also in doubles action against Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo.
For those on the move, we will have Indian Wells covered on Sky Sports News HQ and don't forget that you can follow us via our website skysports.com/tennis, our app for mobile devices and iPad or our Twitter account @skysportstennis for news, reports, live blogs and expert analysis.
Live ATP Masters Tennis
Live ATP Masters Tennis
Sky Customers can now upgrade to Sky Sports and get 12 months for just £18 per month. Upgrade now!
Non-subscribers can grab a NOW TV Sky Sports Day Pass for just £6.99 or Sky Sports Week Pass for £10.99. No contract. You can enjoy access to all seven Sky Sports channels and watch on a TV with a NOW TV Box or on a range of devices.
