Nick Kyrgios will face big-serving Croat Ivo Karlovic at the Cincinnati Masters after subduing qualifier Alexandr Dolgopolov in straight sets on Wednesday.
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Kyrgios sees off Dolgopolov to reach Cincy third round
Cincinnati, OH, USA, 17 August 2017 | AAP
Nick Kyrgios has fought back to beat Ukraine’s Alexandr Dolgopolov and advance to the third round of the Cincinnati Masters.
Kyrgios recovered from dropping an early break in the first set to win 6-3 7-6(6) in a match which saw both players bemused to learn they had been serving with women’s balls for six points.
While the balls used on the men’s and women’s tour generally have the same size and pressure, the men usually use extra-duty felt to slow the speed of the ball down while the women use regular-duty balls which have a different logo.
It was Dolgopolov who initially noticed the telltale red marking before alerting the umpire. Kyrgios then noticed a ball in his possession was the same before realising it wasn’t just one.
“What are you guys doing,” the Australian was heard to ask. “Christ almighty.”
Kyrgios had started strongly on serve but soon found himself down 3-1 in the first set after double-faulting to gift Dolgopolov the first break of the match.
The world No.23 then immediately returned the favour and didn’t drop another game to take the opening set and next faces unseeded Croatian Ivo Karlovic.
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