Nick Kyrgios will go head-to-head with the Socceroos on Tuesday night with the boom teenager's Australian Open quarter-final against Andy Murray scheduled for the prime evening slot on centre court.
Open tournament director Craig Tiley has been pilloried for keeping local drawcards Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic away from the 15,000-capacity Rod Laver Arena throughout the first week of the event, with Tomic slamming the scheduling as "ridiculous".
But after Kyrgios overcame a two-set deficit to beat Italian Andreas Seppi and become the first Australian to reach the last eight at Melbourne Park since Lleyton Hewitt in 2005, the teenager could be kept off centre stage no longer.
The match is likely to start at 7.15pm (AEDT), 45 minutes before the Asian Cup semi-final between the Socceroos and the United Arab Emirates in Newcastle, whish is being televised by the ABC and Fox Sports.
Channel Seven drew a tournament-high viewing audience of 2.64 million for Kyrgios's drama-charged 5-7 4-6 6-3 7-6 (7-5) 8-6 win over Seppi on Sunday night.
The clash with Murray will headline the evening session on RLA, with the likes of Simona Halep, Maria Sharapova and Rafael Nadal also playing there earlier in the day.
Not that being sent to the likes of Margaret Court Arena and showcourt three earlier in the tournament has seemed to bother Kyrgios, who has ridden a wave of raw emotion into the last eight.
"I don't mind. (I'd play on) Court 20," he said after saving a match point before beating Seppi.
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