Melbourne: Australia's Nick Kyrgios said he had "respect" for Rafael Nadal despite their personal differences after he set up a last-16 match with the top seed at the Australian Open on Saturday. Kyrgios played down disagreements with the world number one -- against whom he has a 2-1 record on hard courts -- after some barbed exchanges between the two. "Regardless, if we don't like each other or whatever, I think there's a layer of respect," Kyrgios said after his five-set thriller with Russia's Karen Khachanov.

"He's one of the greatest of all time. I also read that he thinks I'm good for the sport. "There's a layer of respect that we both have for each other. Doesn't necessarily mean we like each other, but we're going to go out there and give contrasting styles and personalities." Kyrgios beat Khachanov 6-2, 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (6/8), 6-7 (7/9), 7-6 (10/8) over 4hr 26min -- the longest match of his career -- to set up a last-16 meeting with the 19-time Grand Slam winner.