Malaysian Mum Anxious As Tennis Star Son Faces Nadal At Wimbledon
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- Published on Tuesday, 01 July 2014 09:03
Australian Nick Kyrgios (PIC: Reuters)MELBOURNE: Australian teenager Nick Kyrgios’ Malaysian mother Norlaila will be watching nervously at her home in Canberra as her son extends his stunning Wimbledon debut into a dream last-16 showdown with world No 1 Rafael Nadal.
And the 19-year-old is confident he can cause one of the All England Club’s greatest upsets in the biggest match of his life today, the Australian Associated Press (AAP) reports.
Norlaila, also known as Nill, was born in Kuala Lumpur and is a computer engineer in Canberra while her husband George is a painter is with Nick at Wimbledon.
Wildcard Kyrgios, the youngest man in the draw, rebounded from the high of his remarkable win over Frenchman Richard Gasquet to beat 68th-ranked Czech, Jiri Vesely 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-2 in a rain-interrupted third-round match on Saturday.
Kyrgios will now face the 14-time grand slam champion Nadal in the sort of match he’s dreamed about since first picking up a racquet.
“Obviously 14 grand slams between us, so it’s going to be a good match,” Kyrgios was quoted by AAP as saying. I’m overwhelmed with happiness. Making my fourth round at a grand slam and the opportunity to play Rafa, hopefully on Centre Court, it’s an opportunity I’m just going to embrace.
“I never thought I would be seeing Nadal in my fourth round Wimbledon in my 19th year. I thought it would take years and years of work to finally have an opportunity like that. To think that it’s going to happen in about a day is daunting, but so exciting as well,” he said.
Nadal, Wimbledon champion in 2008 and 2010, reached the fourth round for the first time since 2011 with a four-set 6-7 (7-4), 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 win over Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin.
“Young players are very dangerous as always they have something special,” Nadal said. “They are able to play with no pressure. They are fresh.”
—Bernama
