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Melbourne - Kyle Edmund says his experience at the Australian Open has given him the "bug" for Grand Slam tennis and a taste of being at the top.
Sixth seed Marin Cilic was a match too far for the unseeded Briton, who crashed out 6-2, 7-6 (7/4), 6-2 on Thursday, but it was a memorable tournament for the 23-year-old.
By making the last four, he became only the fourth British man to reach the Australian Open semi-finals in the post-1968 Open Era.
Along the way he claimed the scalps of world No 3 Grigor Dimitrov in the quarter-finals and 11th seed Kevin Anderson in the first round.
"It's been so good. It's an experience to be here," he said.
"One of the biggest tournaments of the world, and making a good run and beating top players."
His exploits will see him rise to around 25 when the new world rankings come out next week. That is 15 places higher than he has ever been before.
"It's been a really good couple of weeks for me," he said.
"Obviously disappointed right now, but can be very happy with the way I've gone about things. I've played a lot of tough matches. Won some tough matches. Beat good players.
"Yeah, this type of tournament just gives you the bug to want more. You know, once you get a taste, it's like, yeah, I want more of this. Definitely go away from the whole week feeling positive."
One of the aspects he enjoyed most was playing five sets, which he said was "a true test of quality and grit and stuff".
"You know, it's a battle. It really always feels better when you win these matches at the Grand Slams. It's a test of so many things like endurance, mental, physical," he said.
"Best-of-five sets should always stay in the men's game."
