[Singles – First Round]
Frances Tiafoe (USA) def. Kei Nishikori (JPN) 6–4, 6–4
■Kei Nishikori was, as expected, competitive right to the very end. Although he never managed to take the lead, he stayed within a striking distance of the world No. 8. In the first set, he fought back from an early 0–2 deficit to break back, and he kept both sets close. Yet, in an on-court interview after the match with Shuzo Matsuoka, Nishikori said, “I wish I could have shown a little more of my tennis.” At the press conference, he admitted with a wry smile, “With the way I played today, I can’t really end my career like this.”
■Tiafoe said after the match, “I felt today was Kei’s day,” referring to Nishikori’s final Kinoshita Group Japan Open appearance. But once they began trading shots, such sentiment took a back seat. Tiafoe has been in strong form this season, reaching the US Open semifinals for the third time and returning to the top 10 for the first time in three years. Having admired Nishikori, he approached the match with a high level of focus and determination. Given where the two players are in their careers today, a straight-sets victory for Tiafoe could be seen as a natural result. Even so, Nishikori was not satisfied with his own performance and said “I’m disappointed because I didn’t play well.”
■Looking back, it was perhaps this competitive spirit that sustained Nishikori throughout more than three decades in tennis. At 178 centimeters (5 feet 10 inches), he can look almost boyish standing among players well over 190 centimeters (6 feet 2 inches). Yet he rose as high as world No. 4 by making full use of his physical, technical and mental abilities, believing that “even a smaller player can find ways to win.” He kept on pushing himself to the limit in an effort to counter his opponents’ power, paying the price with repeated injuries that forced him off the tour. But despite those setbacks, he never allowed himself to be broken.
■“Looking back, there were more difficult periods than good ones. But this is my life, so I couldn’t avoid them. I had no choice but to fight through them. Even in those moments, clenched my teeth and kept going, and I’m proud that I made it this far,” Nishikori said. Sitting on the bench after the match, he was overcome by a “sense of loss,” and tears unexpectedly welled up in his eyes. Perhaps deep down, he felt that he had given everything he had. “After losing so many years to injuries, I think what I’m most proud of is that I was able to keep on playing and never gave up until the very end.” Standing in the center of a packed Ariake Coliseum, Nishikori held his head high.
(Japan Tennis Association)
