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GIVE a star a stage, they say, and settle in for the show.
Open organisers have certainly done that by assigning Nick Kyrgios to christen the luxuriously transformed Margaret Court Arena tonight — a plum gig in the context of exposure.
Tennis royalty Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova will share the full glare of the opening night spotlight on Rod Laver Arena, but Kyrgios's placement is a statement about his place in the pecking order of the most impressive squad of young Australian men to have graced the tournament for years.
Nine are spread around the complex today, giving ground-pass fans plenty of scope to get a handle on them.
Kyrgios is the headline act, narrowly ahead of the apparently reformed Bernard Tomic.
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After slaying of the mighty Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon, the expectation is, unavoidably, very high — perhaps even out of whack with his overall achievements, not to mention that his back is not 100 per cent right.
But that's one of the captivating things about sport — when a new star arrives, guns blazing, nobody wants to put limits on what is possible.
Kyrgios, 19, starts against Argentina left-hander Federico Delbonis, 24, who has lost more matches than he has won and is ranked slightly further back.
It is eminently winnable but also a potentially deep disappointment: an early exit is not what fans want to see given the build-up.
How much of Kyrgios is show and how much is substance is still a matter of debate, a work in progress.
Nick Kyrgios starts against Argentina left-hander Federico Delbonis. Source: News Corp Australia
There was plenty of both when he took Nadal down.
It wasn't just that the Spanish superstar was beaten — he was blown away by a phenomenal 37 aces, the most he had ever faced. It was truly exciting to see and it is why queues will form to watch Kyrgios here.
When he rocked up to a black-tie dinner in October to receive the Newcombe medal as the year's best Australian, Kyrgios sported a purple suit he was suspected of pinching from Elvis.
He revelled in the attention it provoked, confirming he is out to enjoy what the game — and his profile in it — has to offer in a broad sense, as he should.
Like Tomic he is a product of his times and his generation.
It's possible to forget he is still only 19 but he doesn't. "This is my last Grand Slam as a teenager and I'm going to embrace that," he said yesterday.
Legendary American coach Nick Bollettieri is a fan, saying: "He's a real character — a big dude with all the tools. Now he has to prove he can be one hell of a player.
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"He knows he can do it. He's fiery. He puts on a great show.
"But I believe he has to get a lot stronger mentally and not get so emotional. I believe mindset will determine his future."
Kyrgios seems to be working hard on that.
"I think I play my best tennis when I'm finding that fine line between staying really positive and staying calm," he said.
"You don't want to get too over-hyped.
"The older I get the more mature I'll get.
"I'm obviously not going to be a robot, not show any emotion.
"I'm putting more expectation and pressure on myself to perform and obviously I'm expecting more out of myself now."
The scriptwriters have read the play correctly with the fixture. "I play the game to play on big stages and obviously get good fans and crowd support," he said.
ron.reed@news.com.au
Twitter: @Reedrw
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