David Goffin is out of the 2017 Cincinnati Masters, losing to Nick Kyrgios in the first round on Tuesday. While Goffin, who was seeded 9th in the event, did not pick up a good draw he didn't contest the Kyrgios match well in Ohio, losing 6-2, 6-3. The result follows a very poor stretch of play for Goffin, all of which follows the injury that he suffered at the 2017 french open in the spring.
Goffin's random injury at Roland Garros
Goffin appeared to be an important player heading into the 2017 French Open with Wimbledon 2017 just around the corner as well.
However in the third round, the Belgian drew Horacio Zeballos. Part way through the match Goffin slipped on a rolled-up tarp on the outer edge of the court. The tarp was there in case it was needed to cover the court in the event of rain. The slip was enough to injure Goffin's foot, he would have to withdraw from Roland Garros, and he would, in fact, miss the entire grass-court season as well.
Prior to the injury Goffin had quality wins on tour from this season. For examples, he beat both Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem in Monte Carlo before he lost to Rafael Nadal in a match that infamously featured an egregious line call that favored the Spaniard. Since the injury Goffin has three losses to players ranked 50th or worse, including a loss to Ivan Dodig, a player that was ranked 412th at the time of their match in Umag.
Kyrgios could emerge as a favorite this week
With all the players that are currently on tour with injuries, David Goffin is a player that might enjoy a top-ten finish this season. However with a first-round exit in Cincinnati, the Belgian definitely suffered a major setback. Instead, it's Kyrgios that has a good look at the Cincinnati draw for the balance of the week.
Next up Kyrgios has a match against Alexander Dolgopolov, an inconsistent player on tour. Kyrgios also shares a draw to the quarterfinals with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a player that did not look sharp in Montreal last week.
Kyrgios certainly has his problems himself. A few weeks ago he missed ATP Atlanta injured, news that caused him some mild controversy as he was spotted playing basketball while supposedly on the mend.
Two weeks ago he withdrew from a first-round match in Washington, a 500-series event on tour. He could be seen in the match talking with his mother and claiming that he didn't want to be playing.
There are many ways that Kyrgios loses matches and not all of them are typical for tennis as this is a player that struggles to stay mentally focused. However, he is one of the players that could make the final in Cincinnati, sharing a draw with Rafael Nadal to that stage of the tournament.
