Wimbledon 2018: Australian Nick Kyrgios wins closely contested first round match against Denis Istomin

London: Nick Kyrgios cranked down 42 aces as he opened his Wimbledon campaign with 7-6(3) 7-6(4) 6-7(5) 6-3 win over Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin on Tuesday.

The Australian showman saved two set points in the first set and was briefly rattled when 92nd-ranked Istomin grabbed the third on a tiebreak on Court 12. Kyrgios railed against his entourage and kept up a regular dialogue with the umpire and anyone who would listen but remained focused enough to break decisively in the eighth game of the fourth set before completing victory with another ace.

The 23-year-old will face Dutchman Robin Haase or Romanian Marius Copil for a place in the third round where he could potentially face fellow Australian Bernard Tomic.

Kyrgios was in impressive form leading into the championships with strong runs in Stuttgart, where he pushed Roger Federer hard, and at Queen’s Club where he served almost 100 aces in four matches before losing in the semis to Marin Cilic.