Advertisement

Kyrgios’ best chance of winning Wimbledon

Nick Kyrgios’s Wimbledon stocks have soared with a priceless first-time top-16 seeding at the All England Club.

Kyrgios has been elevated to 15th seed for the championships starting on Monday despite being ranked number 18 in the world.

• Gould slams ‘selfish’, ‘domineering’ Blues
• Sam unloads as Wilson and McGuire make peace
• AIS investigates extreme weight loss method

The crucial promotion protects the Australian No. 1 from a meeting against any of the top eight seeds – including heavyweights Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Roger Federer – until at least the fourth round.

Samantha Stosur will also enjoy the significant benefits of a top-16 seeding, but fellow Australian Bernard Tomic has not been handed any such favours.

The recent Queen’s Club semi-finalist has been seeded 19th for the men’s event, in line with his ranking, and leaves him in danger of striking one of the big guns as early as the third round.

Kyrgios, though, was elevated above Gael Monfils and John Isner under the All England Club’s complex grasscourt formula, which rewards players for outstanding results on the surface in the past two years.

The 21-year-old announced his arrival on the international stage with a stunning upset of then-world number one Rafael Nadal en route to the quarter-finals in 2014 before falling to Richard Gasquet in the round of 16 last year.

Kyrgios arrives this year with a career-high ranking and is rated by bookmakers as sixth-favourite for the title as he looks to cash in on his seedings break.

The enigmatic youngster is also set for five-star treatment at the Boodles exhibition event, with Kyrgios slated to showcase his Wimbledon credentials in a marquee match-up against Djokovic on Friday.

Tomic, who is continuing his preparations at Wimbledon under Lleyton Hewitt’s guidance, will be disappointed he was not promoted in the seedings despite the absence of world number four Nadal with a wrist injury.

Stay informed, daily
A FREE subscription to The New Daily arrives every morning and evening.
The New Daily is a trusted source of national news and information and is provided free for all Australians. Read our editorial charter
Copyright © 2024 The New Daily.
All rights reserved.