Nick Kyrgios insists his mindset does not change against the best players after shocking Novak Djokovic in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel quarter-finals, insisting he merely likes to play them.

The outspoken Australian is an unpredictable character on the court capable of the sublime or the farcical, but he was inspired form to topple top seed Djokovic 7-6 (11-9) 7-5 in Acapulco.

Kyrgios has now beaten Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in each of his first encounters with the legendary trio.

But the 21-year-old says that there is no secret to his success against the best in the business.

"Honestly it doesn't change anything when I face them, I simply like to play them," he told reporters when asked about his record.

"I served very well, I fought on every point trying to put him under as much pressure as possible on every point on his serve and at the end it worked.

"I was a little bit nervous because I'm sure the crowd was rooting for Novak. He's one of the greatest players of all time but I'm playing with confidence. My serve is the best part of my game and I had one of my best serving matches."

For Djokovic, it marked another setback in his quest to return to the top of the men's game having been toppled by Andy Murray late last year.

Djokovic made a promising start to the year by beating his long-time rival in the final in Qatar, but suffered a shock second-round exit at the Australian Open before his latest setback against Kyrgios.

The Serbian was in a terse mood after the defeat, and when asked how he felt merely replied: "Not great.

"He has a great serve, I hope he wins. Congratulations."