We’re halfway through the Cincinnati Masters, and the following are the main storylines going into the Quarterfinals on Friday; We’re seeing strong and consistent play from the Russians again, Venus Williams is making a run, Roger Federer gets shocked by Rublev and Nick Kyrgios has another crazy meltdown at a Masters 1000 event. 

Another interesting development is Ashleigh Barty’s play. She’s looking like a number one player again, handling both Sharapova and Kontaveit to set up a showdown with Sakkari. Should be a fun match to watch, given how well Sakkari is playing. Edge goes to Barty.

Let’s talk about the Russians though. Another week, and another strong showing from the both Medvedev and Khachanov. Medvedev especially – he’s been cruising. Rublev shocked Federer, and assures that It will be an all-Russian Quarterfinal, which also assures another Russian Semifinalist at a Masters event, two weeks in a row. Nobody has been more consistent this hard-court season than Medvedev. Edge goes to him against Rublev. 

Then there’s Khachanov, who had the great luck of facing the emotionally volatile and the ever-malcontent Nick Kyrgios.  Props to Khachanov for staying focused during the circus that was their second-round match. That being said, I’m starting to be at a loss as to what in the world is going on in Nick’s head. He was in a winning position before he started getting into it with the Ref. The exchanges went on and on, and today the APT fined him $113,000. 

He seemed to be more interested in discussing the serve clock than winning the match. In Montreal it was the same thing, he got into it with the referee during his loss to Kyle Edmund because the ref had not arranged white towels for him. So, two Masters 1000 tournaments, and two losses against the Serve Clock and White Towels. It will be fun to see what makes him lose it in the US Open. Will he get all crazy over the smell of French Fries in the stands? 

In the feel-good story line of the tournament, Venus Williams is playing great again. This has been a spectacular week for this former number one and seven Grand Slam title holder. She took out world number five, Kiki Bertens in the second round, and then treated us to a solid win against a solid Donna Vekic to reach the quarters. 

So, there we have it, this week we’re seeing the Russians give it a go, Venus Williams picking up the slack for Roger Federer, and another Kyrgios meltdown.