- Nick Kyrgios is playing tennis at the level of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, a rival has said.
- Daniil Medvedev made the comparison after being beaten by the Australian on Sunday.
Nick Kyrgios is playing tennis at the level of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal right now, the man he defeated on Sunday night has said.
Kyrgios beat reigning US Open champion Danii Medvedev 7-6 (13-11), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the last-16 to book his spot in the quarterfinals in New York for the first ever time.
"It was a high-level match," said Medvedev after the match. "I've played Novak, Rafa. They all play amazing. Nick today played kind of their level, in my opinion."
"He's tough to play," added the Russian. "He has an amazing serve. But from baseline it's not like when the point starts, you know that you have the advantage.
"He plays good. He has every shot."
Medvedev, 26, will lose his ranking as World No.1 after the defeat, while Kyrgios will move back into the world's top 20 for the first time since February 2020.
"It was an amazing match," Kyrgios said. "Daniil is the defending champion and a lot of pressure on his shoulders, but I've been playing great recently.
"People were really starting to doubt my ability to pull out matches like this at majors. I'm really proud of myself because it hasn't been easy dealing with all the criticism."
—US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 5, 2022
Kyrgios is currently enjoying the best form of his career.
The 27-year-old, who has reputation for his hot temper on the court, finished as the runner-up at Wimbledon in July, before last month winning the Citi Open men's singles title.
It's a run of form that has seen him rise over 100 places in the ATP rankings from where he was ranked in March.
"I just feel like I'm playing for a lot more than myself," he said after beating Medvedev. "I've got a lot of motivation in the back of my mind."
Kyrgios plays another Russian, 27th seed Karen Khachanov, in the US Open's last-eight on Tuesday.