Bloomberg -- NEW YORK – Kei Nishikori of Japan became the first Asian man to reach a Grand Slam final in the 137-year history of tennis’s biggest tournaments, beating top-seeded Novak Djokovic 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 at the U.S. Open.
Nishikori broke Djokovic on five of his seven opportunities, including in the first and last games of the fourth set, to win his third consecutive match against a top-10 player. On match point, he dropped his racket and pumped both fists in the air.
“I feel the support from Japan, even from the TV,” the 24-year-old Nishikori said in a courtside interview after the match. “It’s 4 o’clock in the morning, but I hope everyone’s watching.”
Prior to this week Nishikori had advanced past the fourth round in just one of the 20 Grand Slams he’d played in his career. He came to New York having taken four weeks off to recover from a cyst on his right foot that was surgically removed in August.
In hot, humid and windy conditions at the National Tennis Center in New York — temperatures on the court reach at least 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius) in the third set — Nishikori played his third consecutive match of four or more sets. He advanced to the quarterfinals with a five-set win over fifth-seeded Milos Raonic (4:19) and two days later beat third- seeded Stan Wawrinka in five sets (4:15).
“I guess I love to play long matches,” Nishikori said.
Nishikori is the fifth highest-paid men’s tennis player in the world, according to Forbes magazine’s annual rankings, trailing just 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer, 14-time winner Rafael Nadal, Djokovic and 2012 U.S. Open champion Andy Murray. Of the $11 million he made from June 2013 through June 2014, $9 million was from endorsement deals with companies including Adidas AG, Delta Airlines and Tag Heuer, the magazine said.
Djokovic, of Serbia, was playing in his eighth consecutive U.S. Open semifinal, and the 17th Grand Slam semifinal in his last 18 attempts. He’s been the world’s No. 1 since July, after holding the ranking for almost a year from 2012-2013.
After breaking Djokovic in the first game of the fourth set, Nishikori fell behind 0-40 on his serve in the second game. Nishikori won the next five points to take a 2-0 lead. The crowd, which was mostly behind Djokovic earlier in the match, became more vocal for the Japanese player as the match progressed.
Prior to this year, Nishikori’s only Grand Slam quarterfinals appearances was at the Australian Open in 2012, losing in straight sets to Murray.
After beating Wawrinka, Nishikori became the first Japanese semifinalist at the U.S. Open since Ichiya Kumagae in 1918. The previous Japanese man to reach the final four at any Grand Slam was Jiro Satoh at Wimbledon in 1933.
japantimes.co.jp
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