Kyrgios exits Lyon Open in first round

Controversial Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios suffered a major setback in his preparations for the French Open when he was knocked out of the Lyon Open by Nicolas Kicker of Argentina in the first round.

The fourth-seed comfortably won the first set before slumping to a 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 defeat at the hands of Kicker, who is ranked at 94, in a thrilling opening round contest that lasted almost one and a half hour.

During the match, Kyrgios served six aces to clinch the first set but after losing a close-fought second, he committed four double faults in the third to hand victory to his Argentine opponent.

Earlier, Kyrgios was forced to withdraw from the recently-concluded Italian Open due to a hip injury.

He will now head into the French Open, which slated to begin from May 28 and runs till June 11.