Fast-rising British star Jacob Fearnley kept his sights set on defeating ailing Nick Kyrgios in the home favourite’s long-awaited return to the Australian Open.
The 23-year-old Fearnley won the first overseas Grand Slam match of his fledgling career 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 7-6 (7-2).
Former Wimbledon finalist Kyrgios was making his first appearance at Melbourne Park since 2022 after suffering a serious injury.
But his comeback was doomed as the Scot, who only left university last April, took full advantage of his opponent’s physical problems in their highly-anticipated first-round match.
Fearnley’s dominance silenced the home crowd at the John Keane Arena, who supported Kyrgios during the memorable moments of his Australian Open career.
The atmosphere quickly smoothed out as it became apparent that Kyrgios was struggling.
Former world number 13 Kyrgios, who is unranked and received a wild card to play, suffered an abdominal injury on his return at the Brisbane International in early January.
That means there is doubt whether he will even play at Melbourne Park this week.
Kyrgios looked out of sorts from the start against Fearnley, regularly clutching his stomach and twice needing treatment in his chair.
Fearnley, who enjoyed a spectacular rise into the world’s top 100 last year, refused to be fazed by the problems facing his opponent.
While Kyrgios rallied from a break down in the third set, briefly electrifying the crowd, Fearnley ran away in the tiebreak to advance to the second round.