The thing Nick Kyrgios did that Rafael Nadal and Pete Sampras couldn't
The thing Nick Kyrgios did that Rafael Nadal and Pete Sampras couldn't
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Nick Kyrgios may have lost his Australian Open quarter-final against Andy Murray, but he's still managed something that the likes of Rafael Nadal and Pete Sampras haven't.
That is, appear in two grand slam quarter-finals before turning 20.
Kyrgios this week became the first teenager since Roger Federer in 2001 to achieve the feat.
Nadal was just five days into his twenties when he defeated Novak Djokovic, who retired hurt in the 2006 French Open quarter-finals.  
Sampras, meanwhile, had won his first US Open title in 1990 and was then defeated by fellow countryman Jim Courier in a quarter-final less than a month after graduating from his teenage years. 
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It's an illustrious club. Here's some great players from the past who have hit their straps earlier than most. 
Roger Federer – 19 years old
Federer was thumped in his first grand slam quarter-final by Alex Corretja in straight sets at the French Open in 2001, and ironically was toppled by the same player a year earlier in the round of 16. 
But Federer appeared in another quarter-final the following slam – Wimbledon 2001 – when he was 19 years old.  
Despite his early success, Federer didn't win his maiden slam until two years later, defeating Aussie Mark Philippoussis 7-6, 6-2, 7-6 at the All England Club in 2003. 
Bjorn Borg – 19 years old
The exuberant Swede made his first grand slam quarter-final in just his second appearance. He went down to Roger Taylor at Wimbledon, but will be mostly remembered for his 1974 French Open title against Manuel Orantes, who he defeated 2-6, 6-7 (1-7), 6-0, 6-1, 6-1. 
Borg turned 19 during the tournament and ended up winning another six French Opens and five Wimbledon titles altogether.  
Boris Becker – 17 years old 
Current coach of world No.1 Novak Djokovic and six-time Grand Slam singles champion, Boris Becker racked up his first two quarter-finals appearances when he was 17 years old. 
After a quarter-finals birth at the Australian Open in 1984, Becker then became the youngest ever male to win a grand slam title, taking out Wimbledon at the age of 17 years and 227 days. His record was later broken by ... 
Michael Chang – 18 years old
With the Tiananmen Square massacre falling during the middle Sunday of the 1989 French Open, American Michael Chang, born to Taiwanese parents, stunned the tennis world when he knocked off world No.1 Ivan Lendl in the fourth round. 
He later revealed he had been bunkered down in a Paris hotel room watching the terror unfold on television, and spoke of his will to push through severe cramps during the match. 
Not content with his upset victory, and knowing America had failed to win a grand slam in the previous five years, Chang went on to become the youngest ever winner of a grand slam at 17 years and four months. 
He couldn't follow up his remarkable victory a year later, managing only a quarter-final appearance at the French Open. He never won another grand slam. 
Martina Hingis – 16 years old
She was the youngest grand slam champion ever, winning the women's 1996 doubles title at Wimbledon with Helena Sukova. 
But during the Australian Open the same year, Hingis made her first quarter-final, before turning the heat up with a maiden grand slam title in 1997 at Melbourne Park and in doing so becoming the youngest female singles champion of the 20th century. 
Hingis went on to win nine grand slams in total. 
Maria Sharapova – 17 years old 
Eleven years ago, Sharapova burst onto the grand slam scene with an almost unbearable shriek and powerful forehand. 
After her quarter-final effort in the French Open of 2004, she followed it up with her maiden grand slam win at Wimbledon over Serena Williams at just 17 years of age. 
Her form dipped a little towards the end of the 2000s, but has since reignited. 
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