Michael Venus and his German partner Tim Puetz are out of the Australian Open doubles, edged in a riveting contest with local duo Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis.

The sixth seeds fought courageously in the quarter-final, but eventually fell 7-5 3-6 6-3 in a 136-minute epic.

It was a humdinger of a match, one of the best of the tournament, made more gripping by the ferocious Australian support, with the large crowd disregarding the usual protocols around tennis sportsmanship and fair play.

It was extraordinary and there probably hasn't been that much hate directed towards a Kiwi sportsman in Victoria since Sir Richard Hadlee's brilliance was winding up the MCG in the 1980s.

That intensity provided Kyrgios and Kokkinakis with an edge, and their booming serves and groundstrokes did the rest, though Venus and Puetz showed tremendous fight, allied with their superior doubles instincts.

The Australians sent down a staggering 25 aces (to six by their opponents), which eventually proved too much.

The packed Kia Arena engendered a brilliant, if brutal atmosphere, especially as the consumption of Victoria Bitter increased across the afternoon.

Venus is a veteran of the ATP circuit – but probably hasn't faced such an environment in his career.

There were incessant "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie" chants and loud booing during serves, which only intensified as the match wore on.

The gravity of the assignment was underlined in the opening game. The large crowd let out a vociferous cheer when Venus missed a first serve, ignoring the pleas of the umpire for quiet.