"A lot of things are clicking": Taylor Fritz moves swiftly past Nick Kyrgios in Cincinnati

WATCH: Taylor Fritz defeats Nick Kyrgios in the 2022 Cincinnati Open second round

When it comes to managing time in between points during a tennis match, the wise, longstanding approach is this simple: When you have a lead, make them bleed—that is, move so quickly that your opponent has scarcely a moment to breathe, much less think. But if you’re going down, slow it down. With the player ahead eager to reach the finish line, don’t make it easy. Within the rules, take a bit more time, both after rallies and also on changeovers.

But the world has learned enough about Nick Kyrgios to know that convention matters little to him.

On Wednesday at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, even as he lost point after point against Taylor Fritz, Kyrgios commenced his service motion so quickly that on several occasions, the crowd could barely cease its applause for the conclusion of the prior rally.

So it was that in 51 minutes, Fritz handily won this second round match, 6-3, 6-2. Said Fritz, “That’s the kind of match I really needed to give me a lot of confidence going into the next match, going to the US Open, a lot of things are clicking for sure.”

There was a frisson around this first meeting between these two, a hope that each man’s mix of crackling serves and crisp groundstrokes would make for many a lively rally and keen suspense at the pivotal moments of each set. Hovering in the background was the lingering memory of what Fritz and Kyrgios had done at Wimbledon and their respective connections there to Rafael Nadal and even to each other. In the quarterfinals, Fritz had taken Nadal to the limit, losing that match in a fifth set tiebreaker – an effort that so taxed Nadal that he was forced to withdraw from his semi versus Kyrgios.

Yet perhaps the more telling sign was less in the background of what happened last month and more in the foreground of recent days. Speaking Tuesday after his first round match, Kyrgios said, “You know, I'm just obviously getting to the finish line of my trip. I can feel like it's nearly over. I've got US Open after this and then back home...

“Definitely can feel my tank getting to the end, and, you know, I have just gotta keep going, gotta keep going. Only two events left.”

Kyrgios’ weariness had first surfaced last week in Montreal, when he’d lost in the quarterfinals to Hubert Hurkacz, most tellingly by dropping the third set, 6-1. When a player with as good a serve as Kyrgios loses a final set that badly, you know something is going on.

Definitely can feel my tank getting to the end... Gotta keep going. Only two events left. Nick Kyrgios

Today the fatigue came much sooner, the match in large part decided in the sixth game. Serving at 2-3, Kyrgios was broken, a double-fault and an ill-informed drop shot at 30-40, sure-fire signs that he lacked both the leg strength and the focus required to compete effectively against an opponent he’d stated was quite formidable.

By the time Fritz went up 5-2, he’d won 12 of 14 points, revealing the impressive mix of increased aggression and improved mobility that has put the 24-year-old American on the doorstep of the Top 10 (Fritz is currently ranked No. 13). Fritz held easily to close out the set. In 24 minutes, he’d struck 12 winners, a mere three unforced errors and won 77 percent of his second serve points.

“I think the most important thing for me going out there was to serve pretty well and take care of my serve,” said Fritz, “Because if he kind of steals a break from you, then he's really good at just holding serve, and he's going to kind of run away with it.”

Following the first set, Kyrgios’ left knee was treated by the trainer. Given a soft warning by the chair umpire earlier for his use of profanity, Kyrgios by this stage was rather subdued.

Meanwhile, Fritz remained in a comfortable place, less of a zone and more of what Hall of Famer Ivan Lendl dubbed a “sub-zone,” a state of tranquility that simply goes about the business of accumulating one point after another.

But there did come one zone-like moment at the start of the second set that snapped open the match for good. Kyrgios served in the opening game. At 30-30, he carved a forehand that at first glance appeared to be a drop shot, but instead was a deep crosscourt approach—an exemplary recreational shot, but not one seen often in 21st century pro tennis. On the run, Fritz struck a crosscourt forehand passing shot winner. Pausing only to gather the balls, Kyrgios at 30-40 double-faulted. Fritz next held serve in 71 seconds and from there was hardly threatened, serving out the final game at 15.

Fritz next plays sixth-seeded Andrey Rublev. Though ranked five spots behind Rublev, Fritz has won three of their five matches, most recently taking a gritty 7-5, 6-4 semifinal on his way to the title at Indian Wells.

“I feel like I need to try and beat him to the punch as much as possible,” said Fritz. “I can't be the one being passive, letting him kind of move me around the court, work me around the court. I just need to kind of focus on myself, play my game and be aggressive.”

Much as Kyrgios would like to rest, he’s scheduled tomorrow to play a doubles match with the man he won the Australian Open with, good friend and fellow Aussie, Thanasi Kokkinakis. Their opponents are the first-seeded team of Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury.

Based on everything from Kyrgios’ current state of mind to his preferred court management approach, there’s a strong chance that match will move along at a lightning-fast speed.