This content was published 7 years ago. It may refer to a past edition of the Internazionali d’Italia.
Nick Kyrgios has set his sights on making the world’s top four after starting his Rome campaign in style with a straightforward 6-1 6-2 win over Italian wildcard Salvatore Caruso in a little over an hour.
The Australian world No.20 is one of the emerging players on the tour and at 21 has high potential. He openly admits clay is not his surface of choice but is hoping for a good run in Rome to enhance his credentials.
“I have beaten three of the top four, and I haven’t played Djokovic yet,” he said when asked about whether he is good enough to challenge. “I don’t think it’s an exaggeration. I think I still need a lot of time. I need to do a lot of hard work, a lot more matches. I need to grow more and become stronger and more fitter. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration at all. I have beaten most of them, anyway.
“It’s probably my least preferred surface, to be honest. I actually don’t play too bad on it. I think it suits my game quite well. It gives me time to set up and really go for my shots and then execute. Obviously my serve, I’m serving well, and I think if you’ve got a good serve you can serve for any surface.
“I just think I move really well on clay which is a bit surprising to some people, but I think clay is a great surface.
“I think the setup up in Rome is really good for the fans. I think the fans can interact with the players more than other tournaments.”
The seeds continue to impress early on with Richard Gasquet beating fellow Frenchman Julien Benneteau in straight sets. Canada’s Milos Raonic needed three sets to get the better of battling Italian wildcard Marco Cecchinato.
There was also an exciting encounter between Jack Sock and Guido Pella with the American prevailing in three.
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