Kei Nishikori
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is an inactive Japanese professional
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
player. He is the second male Japanese player to have been
ranked A ranking is a relationship between a set of items such that, for any two items, the first is either "ranked higher than", "ranked lower than" or "ranked equal to" the second. In mathematics, this is known as a weak order or total preorder of ...
in the top 5 in
singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...
(after
Jiro Sato was a Japanese tennis player. He was ranked World No. 3 in 1933, but committed suicide in the Strait of Malacca during his trip to the Davis Cup in 1934. He received worldwide fame in Wimbledon 1932, when he beat the defending champion Sidney ...
), and the only one to do so in the
Open Era The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis, invented in Birmingham, England now commonly known simply as tennis, is the direct descendant of what is now denoted real tennis or royal tennis, which continues to be played today as a separate sp ...
. Nishikori first reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 4 in March 2015. Nishikori has won 12 singles titles and was runner-up at the 2014 US Open, making him the first male player representing an Asian country to reach a
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
singles final. He also became the first man from Asia to qualify for the
ATP Finals The ATP Finals is the season-ending championship of the ATP Tour. It is the most significant event in the annual ATP calendar after the four majors as it features the top-eight singles players and top-eight doubles teams based on their results th ...
and reached the semifinals in 2014 and 2016. In addition, Nishikori defeated
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
to win the bronze medal at the
2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
, bringing Japan its first Olympic tennis medal in 96 years. Nishikori also holds the record for the highest win percentage in matches extending to 5 sets, with a record of 27-7 and a win percentage of 79.4%.


Personal life

Nishikori was born in
Matsue is the capital city of Shimane Prefecture, Japan, located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 202,008 (February 1, 2021) following the merger with Higashiizumo from Yatsuka District. Matsue is located at ...
in
Shimane Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Shimane Prefecture is the second-least populous prefecture of Japan at 665,205 (February 1, 2021) and has a geographic area of 6,708.26 km2. Shimane Prefecture borders Yamaguc ...
, Japan. His father, Kiyoshi, is an engineer, and his mother, Eri, is a piano teacher. He has an older sister, Reina, who graduated from college and works in Tokyo. He began playing tennis at the age of five. He first won the All Japan Tennis Championships for Kids in 2001, and graduated from Aomori-Yamada High School. Nishikori moved to Bradenton, Florida to join the
IMG Academy IMG Academy is a preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. IMG Academy is set across over 600 acres and features programs consisting of sport camps for youth athletes, adult camps, a board ...
in 2004 at 14 years of age. Nishikori was previously coached by
Brad Gilbert Brad Gilbert (born August 9, 1961) is a former professional tennis player and an American tennis coach. During his career, he won 20 singles titles and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 4 in 1990, and a career-high doubles rank ...
. Dante Bottini has been his current coach since December 2010. Former world No. 2 Michael Chang was added to his coaching team beginning in January 2014. Nishikori married his long-term girlfriend Mai Yamauchi in December 2020. His pastimes include
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
, golf,
reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
, and listening to music.ITF Profile
Itftennis.com. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
In August 2020, having not played since the 2019 US Open due to injury and the
coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
, Nishikori tested positive for
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.


Career


Junior career

Nishikori played his first junior match in April 2002 at the age of 13 at a grade 1 tournament in Japan. He won the 2004 title at the Riad 21 Tournament in
Rabat, Morocco Rabat (, also , ; ar, الرِّبَاط, er-Ribât; ber, ⵕⵕⴱⴰⵟ, ṛṛbaṭ) is the capital city of Morocco and the country's seventh largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan populatio ...
, and was a boys' singles quarter-finalist at the 2006 Junior French Open; he partnering
Emiliano Massa Emiliano Massa (born 5 December 1988) is a former professional tennis player from Argentina who won two junior grand slam boys' doubles titles at the French Open. Biography Massa, who comes from Formosa, is the younger brother of top 100 player ...
to win the boys' doubles title at that tournament. Nishikori won the 2007 Luxilon Cup held at the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open by defeating
Michael McClune Michael McClune (born August 22, 1989) is an American professional tennis player. He turned professional in 2007, was represented by IMG and signed a lucrative contract with Nike. Junior career Michael was a finalist at the 2007 Luxilon Cup ...
. As a junior, he compiled a 73–37 win–loss record in singles and 53–31 in doubles, achieving a combined ranking of No. 7 in the world in July 2006.ITF Juniors profile
''ITF Tennis.com'' Retrieved on 20 February 2016.
Junior Grand Slam results - Singles: Australian Open: QF (
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
)
French Open: QF (
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
)
Wimbledon: 1R (
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
)
US Open: 3R (
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
) Junior Grand Slam results - Doubles: Australian Open: SF (
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
)
French Open: W (
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
)
Wimbledon: A (-)
US Open: 1R (
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
)


2006

Nishikori began the year in March with a wildcard entry to the Kyoto Challenger tournament in
Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
, Japan, where he lost to Australian
Robert Smeets Robert Smeets (born 10 November 1985) is an Australian retired professional tennis player. Though born in the Netherlands, Smeets moved to Australia aged 12 and took residency. Personal life Smeets has two sisters, called Karin and Cheyenne. H ...
in the round of 32 and just failed to qualify for the doubles tournament. In May, Nishikori qualified for the ITF Futures event in
Mazatlán Mazatlán () is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding ''municipio'', known as the Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of ...
, Mexico, where he was victorious in the men's singles.


2007

A finalist in two
USTA The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tennis, ...
Pro Circuit events, Nishikori lost to Donald Young in
Little Rock, Arkansas (The Little Rock, The "Little Rock") , government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager , leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_ ...
and Alex Bogomolov Jr. in
Carson, California Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the South Bay region of Los Angeles, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International Airport. Incorporated on February 20, 1968, ...
. He partnered with Young to win the doubles title at Little Rock. At the Sony Ericsson Open in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, Nishikori paired with triple French Open champion
Gustavo Kuerten Gustavo "Guga" Kuerten (; born 10 September 1976) is a Brazilian former world No. 1 tennis player. He won the French Open singles title three times ( 1997, 2000, and 2001), and was the Tennis Masters Cup champion in 2000. During his career he ...
, but the two were defeated in the first round. Nishikori served as a hitting partner for
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
at
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
. After his ATP main draw debut in Los Angeles, Nishikori qualified for the
Indianapolis Tennis Championships The Indianapolis Tennis Championships was an annual men's tennis tournament played in Indianapolis as part of the ATP Tour. Since its inaugural playing in 1987, the tournament was held for one week in July up until its final playing in 2009. Ori ...
in July. He beat
Alejandro Falla Alejandro Falla Ramírez (; born 14 November 1983) is a retired professional male tennis player from Colombia. The left-hander turned pro in 2000 and achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 48 in July 2012. At the 2006 Wimbledon t ...
in the first round to record his first ATP main-draw win. He followed that up with a three-set win over
Michael Berrer Michael Berrer (born 1 July 1980) is a German retired professional tennis player. He reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 42 in May 2010. Career 2010 He reached the quarterfinal at the Aircel Chennai Open in January, losing to ...
, the eliminator of seventh seed
Robby Ginepri Robert Louis Ginepri ( ; born October 7, 1982) is a retired American professional tennis player. He won three ATP singles titles in his career and achieved a career-high ranking of World No. 15 in December 2005. Ginepri's best Grand Slam result ...
, to advance to his first ATP quarterfinal. Although he lost to
Dmitry Tursunov Dmitry Igorevich Tursunov (; born 12 December 1982) is a retired Russian tennis player and current tennis coach. At age 12 he moved to the United States to train and further his prospects of becoming a professional player. His career-high singl ...
in two sets, Nishikori became the youngest player to reach the quarterfinals at
Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
since
Boris Becker Boris Franz Becker (, ; born 22 November 1967) is a German former world No. 1 tennis player. Becker was successful from the start of his career, winning the Wimbledon Championships at the age of 17. He ultimately won six Grand Slam singles tit ...
in 1985. Later that month, Nishikori headed to
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
for his third career ATP event. He defeated
Teymuraz Gabashvili Teymuraz Besikovich Gabashvili ( rus, Теймураз Бесикович Габашвили, , tɛɪ̯mʊˈraz ɡəbɐˈʂvʲilʲɪ; born 23 May 1985) is a Russian professional tennis player. He has a career-high singles ranking of World No. 4 ...
in the first round before falling to
Julien Benneteau Julien Henry Guy Benneteau-Desgrois (; born 20 December 1981) is a French retired professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is ATP world no. 25, which he reached in November 2014. He formerly resided in Boulogne-Billancourt and ...
in the second. He qualified for the China Open in
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
, losing in the first round to
Ivan Ljubičić Ivan Ljubičić (; born 19 March 1979) is a Croatian former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) world No. 3 singles ranking on 1 May 2006. His career highlights include reaching a Grand S ...
. In October, Nishikori received a wildcard entry to the
AIG Japan Open Tennis Championships The Japan Open (currently sponsored by Rakuten) is a men's tennis tournament held in Ariake Tennis Forest Park with its center court Ariake Coliseum, located in Koto, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally founded in 1915 as the Japan International Ch ...
in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, where he lost in the first round to
Zack Fleishman Zachary Rodin Fleishman (born March 17, 1980) is an American professional tennis player. Personal life Fleishman was born in Santa Monica, and attended UCLA for one year before turning pro. He is currently the Chief Operating Officer at Shark ...
. He participated in the tournament's draw ceremony and was honored with an award from the Tokyo Sports Writers Club. Nishikori finished the year representing Japan at the Asian
Hopman Cup The Hopman Cup is an international eight-team indoor hardcourt tennis tournament that played mixed-gender teams on a country-by-country basis.It was held in Perth, Western Australia each year from 1989 to 2019, before being replaced on the calen ...
competition in
Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...
,
Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
.


2008: First ATP title

Nishikori started the year by reaching the semifinals of the Miami challenger tournament. He then entered the Delray Beach tournament as a qualifier ranked world No. 244. He gained entrance to the main draw by defeating Nicolás Todero and Alex Bogomolov Jr. In the first round, he defeated
Florian Mayer Florian Mayer (; born 5 October 1983) is a German former professional tennis player. Mayer reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 in June 2011. Also in 2011, Mayer won his first ATP title after four previous defeats in ATP fin ...
due to a retirement in the second set. In the second round, Nishikori defeated
Amer Delić Amer Delić (; born June 30, 1982) is a Bosnian American former professional tennis player. He is a former captain and member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Davis Cup team. Delić was born in Tuzla, then in Yugoslavia, now in the northeastern p ...
, another qualifier. In the quarterfinals, he won against
Bobby Reynolds Robert Thomas "Bobby" Reynolds (born July 17, 1982) is an American retired professional tennis player who resides in Auburn, Alabama. He was named head men's tennis coach at Auburn University in June 2016. Professional career Reynolds, a nativ ...
. In the semifinals, he upset
Sam Querrey Samuel Austin Querrey (; born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on February 26, 2018, and won ten ATP singles titles. Known for his powerful serve ...
. In the final, Nishikori upset top seed James Blake in three sets to become the first Japanese man in nearly 16 years to win an ATP event. Nishikori lost in the first round of the
Miami Masters The Miami Open (also known as the Miami Masters, and currently branded as the Miami Open presented by Itaú for sponsorship reasons) is a tennis tournament held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. It is part of the men's ATP Tour Mas ...
to the Spanish player
Albert Montañés Albert Montañés Roca (; born 26 November 1980) is a retired professional tennis player from Spain. He first entered the top 100 in 2001. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 22 in 2010 and has won six singles titles and two ...
. He faced James Blake again, this time at the River Oaks International tournament in Houston, Texas in the first round, but Kei lost in two sets. He went out in the third round of the 2008
Queen's Club Championships The Queen's Club Championships is an annual tournament for male tennis players, held on grass courts at the Queen's Club in West Kensington, London. The event is part of the ATP Tour 500 series on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) T ...
against
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
in just over two hours. Facing the world No. 2, Nishikori played well in the match and showed promise. His first
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
appearance at the
2008 Wimbledon Championships The 2008 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament played on grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London in the United Kingdom. It was the 122nd edition of the The Championships, Wimbledon, Wimbledon C ...
on 23 June 2008 ended in a first-round forfeiture to French player
Marc Gicquel Marc Gicquel (born 30 March 1977) is a former professional male tennis player from France. Tennis career Gicquel turned pro in 1999. He made his ATP Tour singles debut at the 2002 Open 13 – Singles, 2002 Open 13 tournament on hard courts in ...
. Suffering from an abdominal muscle strain, Nishikori retired after the second set. In August, he entered the Beijing Olympics on a wildcard. There, he lost in the first round to
Rainer Schüttler Rainer Schüttler (; born 25 April 1976) is a German former professional tennis player. Schüttler was the runner-up at the 2003 Australian Open and a semifinalist at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships. He won an Olympic silver medal in double ...
of Germany. Nishikori made his debut at the US Open, defeating 29th seeded
Juan Mónaco Juan Mónaco (; born 29 March 1984), nicknamed "Pico", is an Argentine former tennis player. He won nine singles titles, reached the semifinals of the 2010 Shanghai Masters and the 2012 Miami Masters, and achieved a career-high singles ranking ...
in the first round. He cruised to the third round, after downing Croatian
Roko Karanušić Roko Karanušić (born 5 September 1982) is retired Croatian professional tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each pl ...
. On 30 August 2008, he became the first Japanese player to reach the round of 16 at the US Open in 71 years, when he beat fourth seed
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
in five sets in what was considered one of the tournament's major upsets. He lost his chance, however, to compete in the quarterfinals when he was beaten by 17th seed
Juan Martín del Potro Juan Martín del Potro () (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine inactive professional tennis player. Del Potro's biggest achievement is a major title: the 2009 US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and the five-time defen ...
in straight sets. In the
Japan Open Tennis Championships The Japan Open (currently sponsored by Rakuten) is a men's tennis tournament held in Ariake Tennis Forest Park with its center court Ariake Coliseum, located in Koto, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally founded in 1915 as the Japan International ...
, he made it to the round of 16, before losing to Frenchman
Richard Gasquet Richard Gabriel Cyr Gasquet (; born 18 June 1986) is a French professional tennis player. His career-high ATP singles ranking is world No. 7, attained on 9 July 2007. He has won a total of 15 singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best performances ...
. Nishikori was given a wildcard for the
Stockholm Open The Stockholm Open (currently sponsored by Intrum) is an indoor tennis event on the ATP Tour played at the Kungliga tennishallen in Stockholm, Sweden. The tournament is owned by The Royal Lawn Tennis Club of Stockholm, SALK (Stockholm Pub ...
, where he made it to his second ATP level semifinal of the year, despite playing with a knee injury. He received a walkover in his quarterfinal match against
Mario Ančić Mario Ančić (; born 30 March 1984) is a Croatian former professional tennis player who currently works as a private equity vice president in New York City. He won three singles titles and five doubles titles. His career-high singles ranking c ...
, who had to withdraw due to illness. In the semifinals, he was beaten by fourth seed
Robin Söderling Robin Bo Carl Söderling (; born 14 August 1984) is a Swedish former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) world No. 4 singles ranking on 15 November 2010. His career highlights include rea ...
.


2009: Injury season

Nishikori made a disappointing start to the season, losing to
Jürgen Melzer Jürgen Melzer (born 22 May 1981) is an Austrian former professional tennis player. Melzer reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 8 in April 2011, and a doubles ranking of world No. 6 in September 2010. He has a younger brother, Geral ...
in the first round of the Australian Open. On 25 March, Nishikori was named 2008 ATP Newcomer of the Year and became the first Asian player to win the award. He withdrew from the French Open,
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
, and the US Open because of an injured right elbow.


2010: French Open debut

Nishikori made his comeback after his injury of the previous year. After receiving a wildcard at Delray Beach, he was beaten in the first round by
Benjamin Becker Benjamin Becker (born 16 June 1981) is a German retired professional tennis player who is known for defeating former world No. 1 Andre Agassi in the third round at the 2006 US Open in what was Agassi's last match as a professional player. Bec ...
. Kei returned to the Challenger tour later in April with great success, reaching quarterfinals at both Baton Rouge and Tallahassee events, followed by a victory at the Savannah Challenger over
Ryan Sweeting Ryan Sweeting (born July 14, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. Personal life Sweeting was born in Nassau, Bahamas. He has been living in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and registered as an American to the ATP. In September 20 ...
in the final. On 15 May 2010, he won the Sarasota open by defeating
Brian Dabul Brian Dabul (; born 24 February 1984) is an Argentine retired tennis player. He was ranked the No. 1 junior in the world in January 2002. His highest ranking in men's singles was No. 82 (9 March 2009), and his highest ranking in doubles was No. ...
, in three sets. Nishikori played in his first French Open. He rebounded from two sets down to defeat
Santiago Giraldo Santiago Giraldo Salazar (, born 27 November 1987) is a retired Colombian professional tennis player. He played on the ATP tour and represented Colombia in the Davis Cup competition. His best tournament result is reaching the final in the 20 ...
of
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
in the first round but he lost his second match against
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
. He lost to
Richard Gasquet Richard Gabriel Cyr Gasquet (; born 18 June 1986) is a French professional tennis player. His career-high ATP singles ranking is world No. 7, attained on 9 July 2007. He has won a total of 15 singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best performances ...
in the first round of the 2010 Aegon Championships. At Wimbledon, he played second seed
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
in the first round and lost in straight sets. At the US Open, the Japanese No. 1 met
Marin Čilić Marin Čilić (; born 28 September 1988) is a Croatian professional tennis player. Čilić has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, including a major at the 2014 US Open. He was also runner-up at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships and the 2018 Austral ...
in the second round. Nishikori ousted the 11th seed in five sets to advance to the third round, his best Grand Slam tournament showing in 2010.


2011: First Masters semifinal, win over World No. 1, Top 25 debut

Nishikori opened the season in
Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
, where he upset two-time defending champion
Marin Čilić Marin Čilić (; born 28 September 1988) is a Croatian professional tennis player. Čilić has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, including a major at the 2014 US Open. He was also runner-up at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships and the 2018 Austral ...
in the first round, before falling in the quarterfinals to
Janko Tipsarević Janko Tipsarević ( sr-cyr, Јанко Типсаревић, ; born 22 June 1984) is a Serbian former tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 8, achieved on 2 April 2012. In his career, he won 4 ATP World Tour titles, one AT ...
. In the 2011 Australian Open, Nishikori reached the third round, defeating
Fabio Fognini Fabio Fognini (; born 24 May 1987) is an Italian professional tennis player. He has a career-high ranking of world No. 9 achieved on 15 July 2019. He is currently ranked (July 2022) in 64th place by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) ...
and
Florian Mayer Florian Mayer (; born 5 October 1983) is a German former professional tennis player. Mayer reached his career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 in June 2011. Also in 2011, Mayer won his first ATP title after four previous defeats in ATP fin ...
along the way. His run was ended in the third round by ninth seed
Fernando Verdasco Fernando Verdasco Carmona (; born 15 November 1983) is a Spanish professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7, achieved in April 2009. His best performance in a Grand Slam was making the semifinals of the 2009 ...
. After the third-round appearance in Melbourne, his ranking rose to No. 70. At the first two
ATP Masters Series The ATP Masters 1000 tournaments (previously known as ATP Masters Series) is an annual series of nine tennis tournaments featuring the top-ranked players on the ATP Tour. The series' events have been held in Europe and North America since the ...
events of the year, Nishikori suffered a first-round loss at Indian Wells and a second-round loss in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
. Nishikori then reached his second final at the 2011 U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships. He was defeated by American wildcard
Ryan Sweeting Ryan Sweeting (born July 14, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. Personal life Sweeting was born in Nassau, Bahamas. He has been living in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and registered as an American to the ATP. In September 20 ...
. At Roland Garros, Nishikori lost in the second round to
Sergiy Stakhovsky Sergiy Eduardovych Stakhovsky ( uk, Сергій Едуардович Стаховський, ; born January 6, 1986) is a Ukrainian former professional tennis player. Stakhovsky turned professional in 2003 and played mostly at the Challenger le ...
. He faced
Lleyton Hewitt Lleyton Glynn Hewitt (born 24 February 1981) is an Australian former world No. 1 tennis player. He is the most recent Australian man to win a major singles title, with two at the 2001 US Open and 2002 Wimbledon Championships. In November 200 ...
in the first round at
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
, but lost in four sets. Nishikori then retired in his first-round match against
Flavio Cipolla Flavio Cipolla (born 20 October 1983) is a former professional tennis player on the ATP Tour from Italy. He reached the second round at the French Open of 2007, where he lost to Rafael Nadal. He reached the 3rd round of the 2008 US Open. His car ...
at the US Open. At the Shanghai Masters, Nishikori reached his first Masters 1000 semifinal. He defeated
Robin Haase Robin Haase (; born 6 April 1987) is a Dutch professional tennis player. He reached his career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 33 in July 2012, and has won two singles titles, at the Austrian Open in both 2011 and 2012. Haase also reac ...
, fourth seed
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
, and
Santiago Giraldo Santiago Giraldo Salazar (, born 27 November 1987) is a retired Colombian professional tennis player. He played on the ATP tour and represented Colombia in the Davis Cup competition. His best tournament result is reaching the final in the 20 ...
, in the first three rounds. In the quarterfinals, Nishikori upset 12th-seeded
Alexandr Dolgopolov Alexandr Oleksandrovych Dolgopolov (born 7 November 1988), formerly known as Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr., is a Ukrainian retired professional tennis player. He changed his forename spelling to the current form in May 2010. Dolgopolov reached the ...
in straight sets. He lost to No. 2
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
in his first Masters 1000 semifinal. He reached a career-high of world No. 30, breaking the previous Japanese mark of No. 46, set by
Shuzo Matsuoka is a retired Japanese professional tennis player, sports commentator, and entertainer. A former Wimbledon quarter-finalist, Matsuoka won one singles title during his career, in Seoul in 1992. In the same year, he reached a career-high ranking ...
in July 1992. In the 2011 Swiss Indoors Basel tournament Nishikori defeated an ailing world No. 1
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
to reach the final, coming back from a 4–5, 0–30 deficit in the second set. The win was only Djokovic's fourth loss of the season, second loss in a completed match, and first loss of a completed match on a non-clay surface. Nishikori was defeated in the final by
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
. On the heels of the victory, Nishikori was granted special exemption into the
2011 BNP Paribas Masters The 2011 BNP Paribas Masters, also known as the ''Paris Masters'', was an ATP World Tour professional men's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 39th edition of the tournament which was part of the 2011 ATP World Tour. It ...
in Paris, and achieved a ranking of world No. 24.


2012: First Grand Slam quarterfinal and second ATP title

Nishikori started the season at the
Brisbane International The Brisbane International established in 2009 is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hardcourts in Brisbane, Queensland in Australia. It is a WTA Premier tournament of the WTA Tour and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 seri ...
, where he lost in the second round to
Marcos Baghdatis Marcos Baghdatis ( el, Μάρκος Παγδατής, ar, ماركوس بغداتيس; ; born 17 June 1985) is a Cypriot former professional tennis player. He was the runner-up at the 2006 Australian Open and a semifinalist at the 2006 Wimble ...
. At the
2012 Australian Open The 2012 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place in Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia, from 16 to 29 January 2012. It was the 100th edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam event of the year. The tournamen ...
, Nishikori came back from a set down to defeat sixth seed
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, where he was then defeated by fourth seed
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
. Nishikori was the first Japanese male player to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in 80 years. Nishikori made it to the quarterfinals of the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships after beating Belgian
Olivier Rochus Olivier Rochus (; born 18 January 1981) is a retired Belgian tennis player. He is the younger brother of Christophe Rochus, also a former top-40 tennis player. Rochus won two singles titles in his career and in 2004 French Open – Men's double ...
in three sets. In the
Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...
, Nishikori lost to Argentina's
Juan Martín del Potro Juan Martín del Potro () (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine inactive professional tennis player. Del Potro's biggest achievement is a major title: the 2009 US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and the five-time defen ...
in the quarterfinals. He and
Go Soeda is a former professional Japanese tennis player. He started playing tennis at the age of four and turned professional in April 2003. He has won 18 singles titles on the ATP Challenger Tour, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of w ...
lost in the first round of the men's doubles. In Toronto, he lost his first match (after a first-round bye) to
Sam Querrey Samuel Austin Querrey (; born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on February 26, 2018, and won ten ATP singles titles. Known for his powerful serve ...
. He did better in Cincinnati, making it to the third round before being defeated by
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
, who ended up a semifinalist in the event. Nishikori had also lost to Wawrinka in the quarterfinals in Buenos Aires in February. On 7 October, eighth seed Nishikori won the Rakuten Japan Open in Tokyo against sixth seed
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), wh ...
of Canada in three sets to win his first ATP 500 series title and second career ATP Tour title, lifting his world ranking from world No. 17 to a career-high of world No. 15. Nishikori's win was historic as he became the first Japanese man to win the Japan Open in its 41-year history.


2013: Third ATP title

Nishikori started the year by playing the Brisbane International and reached the semifinals before retiring to Andy Murray because of a knee injury. Nishikori then reached the fourth round of the Australian Open before falling to fourth-seeded David Ferrer. Nishikori was bothered by a nagging knee injury throughout the match. Nishikori then won his third career title in the U.S. National Indoor Championships by defeating Feliciano López in straight sets. Seeded fifth, Nishikori finished the tournament without dropping a set in taking the winner's check, and moved up six ranking spots from No. 22 in the ATP rankings to No. 16. On 9 May, Nishikori defeated defending champion
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
at the
Madrid Open There are three sporting events known as the Madrid Open: * Madrid Open (golf) The Madrid Open was an annual men's golf tournament which was held in and around the Spanish capital Madrid from 1968 to 2007, apart from a seven-year gap from 1994 to ...
in the third round, but lost to
Pablo Andújar Pablo Andújar Alba (; born 23 January 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. Andújar has won four ATP Tour singles titles and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 32 in July 2015. His best results are reaching the fourth ...
in the quarters. In 2013 US Open first round, Nishikori lost to a lower-ranked opponent, this time to world No. 179 Dan Evans in straight sets.


2014: Career breakthrough, US Open final

Michael Chang Michael Te-pei Chang (born February 22, 1972) is an American former professional tennis player and coach. He is the youngest man in history to win a singles major, winning the 1989 French Open at 17 years and 109 days old. Chang won a total o ...
became Kei Nishikori's coach in 2014. Nishikori made it to the fourth round in the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, but was dismissed by
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
in straight sets without much trouble. He defended his title at the
U.S. National Indoor Tennis Championships The U.S. National Indoor Championships was a tennis tournament that was last held at the Racquet Club of Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. The event was played on indoor hard courts and usually took place in February. For much of i ...
in Memphis, defeating
Ivo Karlović Ivo Karlović (; born 28 February 1979) is a former Croatian professional tennis player. His height of 211 cm (6 ft 11 in) makes him the joint tallest ranked tennis player in history, along with Reilly Opelka. He has won eight ATP sin ...
in the final. He then played at the Masters 1000 event in Miami, where he was seeded 20th. Nishikori saved four match points before defeating 4th seed
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
and advanced to the semifinals with a three-set win against 5th seed
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
. Because of a left groin injury, he gave 2nd seed
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
a walkover in the semifinals. He withdrew from Japan's
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
quarterfinal against the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
. Nishikori returned to action at the end of April, in Barcelona, winning the final against
Santiago Giraldo Santiago Giraldo Salazar (, born 27 November 1987) is a retired Colombian professional tennis player. He played on the ATP tour and represented Colombia in the Davis Cup competition. His best tournament result is reaching the final in the 20 ...
of Colombia in two sets. On 10 May Nishikori made history by reaching the final of
Madrid Open There are three sporting events known as the Madrid Open: * Madrid Open (golf) The Madrid Open was an annual men's golf tournament which was held in and around the Spanish capital Madrid from 1968 to 2007, apart from a seven-year gap from 1994 to ...
, his first Masters 1000 tournament final. Nishikori beat
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
in three sets in the semifinal, and faced world No. 1 and defending champion Rafael Nadal in the final. Nishikori won the first set and led by a break in the second, but Nishikori sustained a back injury while leading 4–2 and was forced to retire at 3–0 in the 3rd set having lost 7 games in a row. The result saw him achieve a career-high #9 in ATP singles ranking. Nishikori lost in the first round of the French Open to
Martin Kližan Martin Kližan (; born 11 July 1989) is a Slovak former professional tennis player. The winner of the 2006 French Open boys' singles title, Kližan turned pro in 2007 and had a career-high singles ranking of world No. 24, achieved on 27 April ...
in three sets. Nishikori bounced back from the French Open first round loss in the grass court season by reaching the semifinals of the 2014 Gerry Weber Open before losing to
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
in straight sets. Nishikori participated in the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
and made it to the fourth round after surviving a tight 5-setter against clay-court specialist
Simone Bolelli Simone Bolelli (; born 8 October 1985) is an Italian professional tennis player. Bolelli is a Grand Slam champion, having won the 2015 Australian Open doubles event with Fabio Fognini, together becoming the first all-Italian men's pair to win a ...
, but eventually lost in the fourth round to
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), wh ...
, despite winning the opening set. Nishikori opened his hard-court season by participating in the
Citi Open The Washington Open (known as the Citi Open for sponsorship reasons) is an annual hardcourt tennis tournament played at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C. The Washington Open is part of the ATP Tour 50 ...
. He reached the quarterfinals only to be beaten by
Richard Gasquet Richard Gabriel Cyr Gasquet (; born 18 June 1986) is a French professional tennis player. His career-high ATP singles ranking is world No. 7, attained on 9 July 2007. He has won a total of 15 singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best performances ...
for the fifth time in his career in straight sets. Nishikori reached his first Grand Slam final at the 2014 US Open. He beat
Wayne Odesnik Wayne Odesnik (born November 21, 1985) is a South African-born American retired professional left-handed tennis player, with a two-handed backhand. His highest singles ranking was No. 77 in 2009. Among his biggest upsets were a 2007 win over Iv ...
,
Pablo Andújar Pablo Andújar Alba (; born 23 January 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. Andújar has won four ATP Tour singles titles and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 32 in July 2015. His best results are reaching the fourth ...
,
Leonardo Mayer Leonardo Martín Mayer (; ''Mayer'' locally or , ; born May 15, 1987) is a former professional tennis player from Argentina. Mayer achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 21 in June 2015 and world No. 48 in doubles in January 2019. ...
and then world No. 6
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), wh ...
in a marathon five-set match that lasted until 2:26 am, tying the record for late finishes at the US Open en route to the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, he scored a rare upset over Australian Open champion
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
, who had thus far dominated their meetings to ensure that he would regain a top ten ranking. He also became the first Japanese man in 81 years to reach the semifinals at a Major since
Jiro Sato was a Japanese tennis player. He was ranked World No. 3 in 1933, but committed suicide in the Strait of Malacca during his trip to the Davis Cup in 1934. He received worldwide fame in Wimbledon 1932, when he beat the defending champion Sidney ...
in 1933 French Championships (now French Open). Nishikori then defeated world No. 1
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
in the semifinals to become the first Asian man ever to reach a Grand Slam tournament final. (As reference, an American male tennis player of Asian descent
Michael Chang Michael Te-pei Chang (born February 22, 1972) is an American former professional tennis player and coach. He is the youngest man in history to win a singles major, winning the 1989 French Open at 17 years and 109 days old. Chang won a total o ...
reached the final of Grand Slam to win
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
at the youngest age of Grand Slam history, and the finalist to be Runner up in both US Open and
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
.) In the final, Nishikori lost to
Marin Čilić Marin Čilić (; born 28 September 1988) is a Croatian professional tennis player. Čilić has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, including a major at the 2014 US Open. He was also runner-up at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships and the 2018 Austral ...
. Nishikori's run at the US Open saw his singles ranking improve to world No.8. Nishikori began the Asian Swing by entering the Malaysian Open as first seed and won for a third season title, beating
Julien Benneteau Julien Henry Guy Benneteau-Desgrois (; born 20 December 1981) is a French retired professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is ATP world no. 25, which he reached in November 2014. He formerly resided in Boulogne-Billancourt and ...
in two sets. Nishikori then went on to participate in the Rakuten Japan Open and won the title for the second time defeating
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), wh ...
in the final. However, in the Shanghai Rolex Masters, he later suffered a first round loss to
Jack Sock Jack Sock (born September 24, 1992) is an American professional tennis player. He has won four career ATP singles titles and 17 doubles titles, and has career-high rankings of world No. 8 in singles (on 20 November 2017) and world No. 2 in dou ...
in straight sets. Nishikori then played in the BNP Paribas Masters and reached the semifinals, defeating
Tommy Robredo Tomás Robredo Garcés, known as Tommy Robredo (, ; born 1 May 1982), is a Spanish former professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking was world No. 5, which he reached in August 2006 as a result of winning the Hamburg Masters ea ...
,
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
and
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
, each in three sets. However, he was ousted by
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
in straight sets. This semifinal appearance guaranteed his berth for his
ATP World Tour Finals The ATP Finals is the season-ending championship of the ATP Tour. It is the most significant event in the annual ATP calendar after the four majors as it features the top-eight singles players and top-eight doubles teams based on their results th ...
debut. In his first Year-End
ATP Finals The ATP Finals is the season-ending championship of the ATP Tour. It is the most significant event in the annual ATP calendar after the four majors as it features the top-eight singles players and top-eight doubles teams based on their results th ...
, Nishikori defeated
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
and
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
, but was defeated by
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
in straight sets. With this result, he progressed through to the semifinals and faced
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
, losing in three sets, thus ending the year at a career high world No. 5.


2015: World No. 4, French Open quarterfinal

Nishikori began the 2015 season by participating in the 2015 Brisbane International and reached the semifinals before being beaten by
Milos Raonic Milos Raonic (; sr, Милош Раонић, Miloš Raonić, ; born December 27, 1990) is a Canadian inactive professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 3 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), wh ...
in 3 tight-set tiebreaks. He reached the 2015 Brisbane International doubles finals with his partner
Alexandr Dolgopolov Alexandr Oleksandrovych Dolgopolov (born 7 November 1988), formerly known as Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr., is a Ukrainian retired professional tennis player. He changed his forename spelling to the current form in May 2010. Dolgopolov reached the ...
but lost in straight sets. Nishikori equalled his best record yet in the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
by reaching the quarterfinals for the second time in his career, dropping only 2 sets along the way, but he was beaten in straight sets by defending champion
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
. In February, Nishikori won his eighth singles title and became the first ever player to win the
Memphis Open The FedEx St. Jude Classic was a professional golf tournament held in Memphis, Tennessee as a regular event on the PGA Tour. The tournament was held annually from 1958 through 2018, and was played in June at TPC Southwind (since 1989). In 2019 ...
three times in a row, beating Kevin Anderson in straight sets in the final. He next participated in the
2015 Abierto Mexicano Telcel The 2015 Abierto Mexicano Telcel was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 22nd edition of the men's tournament (15th for the women), and part of the 2015 ATP World Tour and the 2015 WTA Tour. It took place ...
and reached the final, losing only a set to Kevin Anderson in the semifinals. By reaching the final, he earned enough ATP ranking points to move into a new career high world ranking of No. 4. However, he lost to
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
in straight sets in the final. During the March Masters, he reached the fourth round of the 2015 BNP Paribas Open for the first time in seven appearances but was upset by
Feliciano López Feliciano López Díaz-Guerra (; born 20 September 1981) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He achieved his career-high singles ranking of world No. 12 in March 2015 and doubles ranking of world No. 9 in November 2016.In 2005, López was t ...
in straight sets in the fourth round. In the 2015 Miami Open, he defeated
Mikhail Youzhny Mikhail Mikhailovich Youzhny (born 25 June 1982), nicknamed "Misha" and "Colonel" by his fans, is a Russian retired professional tennis player who was ranked inside the top 10 and was the Russian No. 1. He achieved a top-10 ranking by the Assoc ...
,
Viktor Troicki Viktor Troicki ( sr-Cyrl, Виктор Троицки, ; born 10 February 1986) is a Serbian former professional tennis player. He won his first ATP singles title at the 2010 Kremlin Cup, and his second and third ATP singles titles at the 2015 a ...
and
David Goffin David Goffin (; born 7 December 1990) is a Belgian professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7. He is currently the Belgian No. 1, and the first Belgian man to be ranked in the top 10. Goffin has won six ATP titles ...
all in straight sets losing only a total of 10 games to reach the quarterfinals. However, he was upset by an in-form
John Isner John Robert Isner (born April 26, 1985) is an American professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 8 in singles and No. 14 in doubles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Considered one of the best servers e ...
in straight sets. Nishikori began his clay-court season at the 2015 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell where he reached the final after beating
Teymuraz Gabashvili Teymuraz Besikovich Gabashvili ( rus, Теймураз Бесикович Габашвили, , tɛɪ̯mʊˈraz ɡəbɐˈʂvʲilʲɪ; born 23 May 1985) is a Russian professional tennis player. He has a career-high singles ranking of World No. 4 ...
,
Santiago Giraldo Santiago Giraldo Salazar (, born 27 November 1987) is a retired Colombian professional tennis player. He played on the ATP tour and represented Colombia in the Davis Cup competition. His best tournament result is reaching the final in the 20 ...
,
Roberto Bautista Agut Roberto Bautista Agut (; born 14 April 1988) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 9 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) in singles, which he first achieved on 4 November 2019. Bautista A ...
and
Martin Kližan Martin Kližan (; born 11 July 1989) is a Slovak former professional tennis player. The winner of the 2006 French Open boys' singles title, Kližan turned pro in 2007 and had a career-high singles ranking of world No. 24, achieved on 27 April ...
. He successfully defended his title by beating
Pablo Andújar Pablo Andújar Alba (; born 23 January 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. Andújar has won four ATP Tour singles titles and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 32 in July 2015. His best results are reaching the fourth ...
in the final in two sets to win his ninth career title on the tour. At the
2015 Mutua Madrid Open The 2015 Mutua Madrid Open was a professional tennis tournament that was played on outdoor clay courts at the Park Manzanares in Madrid, Spain from 2–10 May. It was the 14th edition of the event on the ATP World Tour and 7th on the WTA Tour. ...
, Nishikori was granted a first-round bye and proceeded by defeating
David Goffin David Goffin (; born 7 December 1990) is a Belgian professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7. He is currently the Belgian No. 1, and the first Belgian man to be ranked in the top 10. Goffin has won six ATP titles ...
in three tough-sets in the second round. He reached the semifinals after beating
Roberto Bautista Agut Roberto Bautista Agut (; born 14 April 1988) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 9 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) in singles, which he first achieved on 4 November 2019. Bautista A ...
and
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
in straight sets respectively. He then lost to
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
in the semifinals, and his ranking dropped to 6th as a result of failing to defend his points from the final in 2014. Nishikori was given a tough draw at the 2015 Italian Open but managed to reach the quarterfinal after beating
Jiří Veselý Jiří Veselý (; born 10 July 1993) is a Czech professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of World No. 35 on 27 April 2015. He is currently the No. 2 Czech tennis player in singles, as he lost his previous ...
and
Viktor Troicki Viktor Troicki ( sr-Cyrl, Виктор Троицки, ; born 10 February 1986) is a Serbian former professional tennis player. He won his first ATP singles title at the 2010 Kremlin Cup, and his second and third ATP singles titles at the 2015 a ...
, both in straight sets. He faced world No. 1
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
in the QF and lost in three sets. Nishikori opened his French Open campaign by defeating both
Paul-Henri Mathieu Paul-Henri Mathieu (; born 12 January 1982) is a French former professional tennis player. He won four singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best singles performance in an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament was reaching the semifinals of the ...
and
Thomaz Bellucci Thomaz Cocchiarali Bellucci (born 30 December 1987, in Tietê) is a Brazilian professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of World No. 21 in July 2010. Bellucci used a string of ATP Challenger Tour victories early in ...
in straight sets to advance to the third round. He advanced to the 4R for the second time in his career after his third round opponent,
Benjamin Becker Benjamin Becker (born 16 June 1981) is a German retired professional tennis player who is known for defeating former world No. 1 Andre Agassi in the third round at the 2006 US Open in what was Agassi's last match as a professional player. Bec ...
, withdrew due to a right shoulder injury. Nishikori became the first Japanese man to reach the quarterfinals of the French Open in 82 years by beating
Teymuraz Gabashvili Teymuraz Besikovich Gabashvili ( rus, Теймураз Бесикович Габашвили, , tɛɪ̯mʊˈraz ɡəbɐˈʂvʲilʲɪ; born 23 May 1985) is a Russian professional tennis player. He has a career-high singles ranking of World No. 4 ...
. He then played home favorite
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
, but eventually lost in five set. Nishikori opened his grass-court season by participating in the
Halle Open The Halle Open is a men's tennis tournament held in Halle, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Held since 1993, the event is played on four outdoor grass courts and is a part of the ATP Tour 500 series on the ATP Tour schedule. Between 1993 and 2018 ...
where he reached the semifinals, only to retire in his match against
Andreas Seppi Andreas Seppi (born 21 February 1984) is an Italian former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 on 28 January 2013. He became the first Italian to win a title on all three surfaces. Tennis car ...
down 1–4 in the first set due to his calf injury which he attained in his quarterfinal match. Nishikori decided to play Wimbledon, and he reached the second round by beating
Simone Bolelli Simone Bolelli (; born 8 October 1985) is an Italian professional tennis player. Bolelli is a Grand Slam champion, having won the 2015 Australian Open doubles event with Fabio Fognini, together becoming the first all-Italian men's pair to win a ...
in five sets for the second straight year but then withdrew from his second round match against
Santiago Giraldo Santiago Giraldo Salazar (, born 27 November 1987) is a retired Colombian professional tennis player. He played on the ATP tour and represented Colombia in the Davis Cup competition. His best tournament result is reaching the final in the 20 ...
, due to his calf injury acting on him again during his first round match. Nishikori opened his hard-court season by competing at the 2015 Citi Open defeating James Duckworth,
Leonardo Mayer Leonardo Martín Mayer (; ''Mayer'' locally or , ; born May 15, 1987) is a former professional tennis player from Argentina. Mayer achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 21 in June 2015 and world No. 48 in doubles in January 2019. ...
,
Sam Groth Samuel Groth OLY, Member of Parliament#Australia, MP (born 19 October 1987) is an Australian politician and a former professional tennis player. Sitting as a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, Groth represents the Liberal Party of Aus ...
, and
Marin Čilić Marin Čilić (; born 28 September 1988) is a Croatian professional tennis player. Čilić has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, including a major at the 2014 US Open. He was also runner-up at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships and the 2018 Austral ...
en route to the final where he beat
John Isner John Robert Isner (born April 26, 1985) is an American professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 8 in singles and No. 14 in doubles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Considered one of the best servers e ...
in three tight sets to capture his third title of the year and 10th title overall. At the
2015 Rogers Cup The 2015 Rogers Cup presented by National Bank was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 126th edition (for the men) and the 114th (for the women) of the Canadian Open (tennis), Canadian Open, and was part of the ATP World ...
, he reached the semifinals without losing a set and defeated
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
for the first time in eight tries in the quarterfinals. He lost to Andy Murray in the semifinals in straight sets. He withdrew from the Cincinnati Masters citing fatigue and hip injury, which affected his semifinal match against Murray the previous week. He lost in the first round of the 2015 US Open to
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, t ...
. Nishikori started the Asian Fall by participating in his hometown tournament, 2015 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, Rakuten Japan Open, where he reached the semifinals, including victories over Borna Ćorić,
Sam Querrey Samuel Austin Querrey (; born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on February 26, 2018, and won ten ATP singles titles. Known for his powerful serve ...
and
Marin Čilić Marin Čilić (; born 28 September 1988) is a Croatian professional tennis player. Čilić has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, including a major at the 2014 US Open. He was also runner-up at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships and the 2018 Austral ...
. He was upset in his semifinal match by unseeded Benoît Paire. He reached third rounds of the 2015 Shanghai Rolex Masters, Shanghai Rolex Masters before losing to Kevin Anderson. He then played in the 2015 BNP Paribas Masters, BNP Paribas Masters. However, he retired in the third round match against
Richard Gasquet Richard Gabriel Cyr Gasquet (; born 18 June 1986) is a French professional tennis player. His career-high ATP singles ranking is world No. 7, attained on 9 July 2007. He has won a total of 15 singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best performances ...
due to an abdominal injury. Nishikori qualified for the
ATP World Tour Finals The ATP Finals is the season-ending championship of the ATP Tour. It is the most significant event in the annual ATP calendar after the four majors as it features the top-eight singles players and top-eight doubles teams based on their results th ...
for the second straight year in a row, clinching eighth place. He defeated Tomáš Berdych, but lost to
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
and
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
. He failed to qualify for the semifinals, finishing in third place in his group.


2016: Olympic bronze medal

Nishikori began the season ranked No. 8. In January, he entered the 2016 Brisbane International, Brisbane International as the No. 2 seed where he advanced to the quarterfinals with a bye and a straight sets win over Mikhail Kukushkin, but was eventually upset by seventh seed Bernard Tomic in three sets. At the 2016 Australian Open, Australian Open, Nishikori was seeded seventh. He began with victories over Philipp Kohlschreiber, Austin Krajicek and Guillermo García López before beating ninth-seeded
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
to reach his third Australian Open quarterfinal, where he lost to
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
. Nishikori next competed at the 2016 Memphis Open, Memphis Open where he was seeded first and was the three-time defending champion. Nishikori received a bye into the second round and advanced to the semifinals without dropping a set. In the semifinals, Nishikori beat
Sam Querrey Samuel Austin Querrey (; born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on February 26, 2018, and won ten ATP singles titles. Known for his powerful serve ...
in three sets and later beat young American Taylor Fritz in straight sets to win his fourth straight Memphis title and his 11th ATP title overall. He joined Jimmy Connors as the only four-time winners of the event. During the March Masters, Nishikori reached the quarterfinals in the 2016 BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells Masters for the first time in his career after defeating Mikhail Kukushkin, Steve Johnson (tennis), Steve Johnson in straight sets and saving a match point against ninth seed
John Isner John Robert Isner (born April 26, 1985) is an American professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 8 in singles and No. 14 in doubles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Considered one of the best servers e ...
in Nishikori's serve in the third set. He lost to fourth seed
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
in straight sets. Nishikori improved his feat by reaching the quarterfinal again in the Miami Open (tennis), Miami Open by beating Pierre-Hugues Herbert,
Alexandr Dolgopolov Alexandr Oleksandrovych Dolgopolov (born 7 November 1988), formerly known as Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr., is a Ukrainian retired professional tennis player. He changed his forename spelling to the current form in May 2010. Dolgopolov reached the ...
and
Roberto Bautista Agut Roberto Bautista Agut (; born 14 April 1988) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 9 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) in singles, which he first achieved on 4 November 2019. Bautista A ...
in straight sets. He then reached the semifinals of the tournament for the second time in his career after saving five match points and beating Gaël Monfils in a comeback three-set match. He then reached his second final in a Masters 1000 after dismantling Nick Kyrgios in straight sets. He lost to then world No. 1
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
in the final in straight sets. For the 5th consecutive year, Nishikori did not play in Monte Carlo and instead turned his focus to defending his 2016 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell title. He reached the final without losing a set, but lost in straight sets to resurgent nine-time champion Rafael Nadal in the final. He followed his good run by reaching the semifinals in the 2016 Mutua Madrid Open, Mutua Madrid Open, beating
Fabio Fognini Fabio Fognini (; born 24 May 1987) is an Italian professional tennis player. He has a career-high ranking of world No. 9 achieved on 15 July 2019. He is currently ranked (July 2022) in 64th place by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) ...
,
Richard Gasquet Richard Gabriel Cyr Gasquet (; born 18 June 1986) is a French professional tennis player. His career-high ATP singles ranking is world No. 7, attained on 9 July 2007. He has won a total of 15 singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best performances ...
for the first time in 7 meetings and rising teenage star Nick Kyrgios. He lost in the semifinal to Novak Djokovic in straight sets despite a close 2nd set. Nishikori then replicated his Madrid run by reaching the semifinals of the 2016 Internazionali BNL d'Italia, Italian Open for the first time after beating
Viktor Troicki Viktor Troicki ( sr-Cyrl, Виктор Троицки, ; born 10 February 1986) is a Serbian former professional tennis player. He won his first ATP singles title at the 2010 Kremlin Cup, and his second and third ATP singles titles at the 2015 a ...
in the opener in three sets, followed by wins over Richard Gasquet and Dominic Thiem in straight sets. He lost in the semifinal against world Novak Djokovic in a marathon 3 hours three-setter despite winning the first set 6–2 and managed to pull off a tiebreak in the third set. He later participated at the 2016 French Open, French Open but lost to an in-form Gasquet in the fourth round in 4 sets. Nishikori began his grass season at the 2016 Gerry Weber Open, Halle Open, but retired in the 2nd round due to a hip injury. His next tournament was at Wimbledon, where he retired in the fourth round against
Marin Čilić Marin Čilić (; born 28 September 1988) is a Croatian professional tennis player. Čilić has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, including a major at the 2014 US Open. He was also runner-up at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships and the 2018 Austral ...
, once again due to injury. With Murray, Federer and Nadal absent, Nishikori was seeded 3rd for the 2016 Rogers Cup, Rogers Cup Masters in Toronto. After beating Grigor Dimitrov and
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
in the quarterfinals and semifinals respectively, Nishikori then lost to Djokovic in straight sets in the finals, going 0–5 so far in the season against the Serb. Nishikori then participated in the
2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
, where he reached the semis before being defeated by World No. 2
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
in straight sets. However, he later acquired the bronze medal after he defeated Rafael Nadal 6–2, 6–7 (1), 6–3, becoming the first Japanese man to win an Olympic tennis medal since Ichiya Kumagae in the 1920 Summer Olympics. Nishikori nearly replicated his 2014 US Open run by reaching the semifinals of the 2016 US Open (tennis), US Open, defeating
Benjamin Becker Benjamin Becker (born 16 June 1981) is a German retired professional tennis player who is known for defeating former world No. 1 Andre Agassi in the third round at the 2006 US Open in what was Agassi's last match as a professional player. Bec ...
, Karen Khachanov and Nicolas Mahut respectively in four sets, followed by a straight sets fourth-round win against
Ivo Karlović Ivo Karlović (; born 28 February 1979) is a former Croatian professional tennis player. His height of 211 cm (6 ft 11 in) makes him the joint tallest ranked tennis player in history, along with Reilly Opelka. He has won eight ATP sin ...
, and a 5-set victory over world No. 2
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
in the quarterfinals that lasted nearly 4 hours; this was arguably his biggest victory since the 2014 US Open. After leading by a set and a break against eventual champion
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
in the semifinals, a clearly fatigued Nishikori lost in 4 sets, hence ending his U.S hardcourt season with a finals and semifinals run in the Canadian Open and the US Open respectively. After an indifferent Asian swing season where he retired in his home tournament, the 2016 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, Rakuten Japan Open, Nishikori returned to action again in Basel, where he was the No. 3 seed. He enjoyed a successful tournament there, but lost to Marin Čilić in the finals. Nishikori next represented Japan in the
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
Play-Off against Ukraine and played in the doubles rubber alongside Yūichi Sugita, winning the match in straight sets, giving Japan an unassailable 3–0 lead to promote his country back into the 2017 Davis Cup World Group. Nishikori made his third successive appearance at the year-end championships after becoming the fifth player to qualify for the 2016 ATP World Tour Finals. He won his first match, upsetting third seed,
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
in straight sets 6–2, 6–3 before losing his other two Round-robin tournament, round-robin matches to
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
and Marin Čilić respectively, both in three sets. Having done enough to nevertheless make the semifinals however, he was then defeated by a resurgent
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
in straight sets, ending his season with a singles ranking of world No. 5 for both the second time in his career and in the past three years as well.


2017: Wrist injury and out of the top 20

Nishikori began the year by reaching the finals of 2017 Brisbane International, Brisbane, beating Wawrinka along the way, before falling to champion Grigor Dimitrov. In the 2017 Australian Open – Men's singles, Australian Open, after defeating Andrey Kuznetsov (tennis), Andrey Kuznetsov in five sets in the first round, Kei beat his next two opponents in straight sets. His run ended in another five-set match to eventual champion
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
. Nishikori withdrew from the US Open in Cincinnati with a right wrist problem and subsequent scans revealed a tear in one of the tendons. Soon after that, he announced that he would miss the rest of the season. As a result of his extended absence, following the conclusion of 2017 Rolex Paris Masters, Paris he fell to World No.22, his lowest ranking since January 2012 and his first time out of the top 20 in the rankings since March 2014.


2018: Return from injury & back to top 10

Nishikori returned after a 5-month injury layoff and started his 2018 season by playing at the American challenger tour events. In 2018 Oracle Challenger Series – Newport Beach, Newport Beach he lost in the first round against American qualifier Dennis Novikov. In the following week, Novikov and Nishikori met again in the first round. This time, Nishikori won in straight sets. Kei Nishikori went on to win his next four matches en route to win his sixth ATP Challenger career titles in 2018 RBC Tennis Championships of Dallas, Dallas, by defeating Mackenzie McDonald in the final. Nishikori made his return to the ATP Tour competition (since August 2017 Montreal) at the inaugural ATP 250 Tournament in New York Open (tennis), New York. Nishikori made a back-to-back winning return in New York by defeating Noah Rubin (tennis), Noah Rubin and Evgeny Donskoy in the first and second round respectively. He defeated Radu Albot in the quarterfinals in three sets, before losing to Kevin Anderson in the semifinal. Kei Nishikori was unseeded at the 2018 Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco and lost against Denis Shapovalov in the first round. In a bid to regain match fitness, Nishikori entered the Monte-Carlo Masters for the first time since 2012, having never progressed past the third round at the tournament before. Unseeded for the tournament, he beat Tomas Berdych, Daniil Medvedev,
Andreas Seppi Andreas Seppi (born 21 February 1984) is an Italian former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 on 28 January 2013. He became the first Italian to win a title on all three surfaces. Tennis car ...
, Marin Cilic, and Alexander Zverev Jr., Alexander Zverev to reach his 4th career Masters 1000 finals, before losing to Rafael Nadal in straight sets in the finals. He thus became the active player with the most Masters 1000 finals without a title. At the 2018 Italian Open, he advanced past
Feliciano López Feliciano López Díaz-Guerra (; born 20 September 1981) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He achieved his career-high singles ranking of world No. 12 in March 2015 and doubles ranking of world No. 9 in November 2016.In 2005, López was t ...
, third seed Grigor Dimitrov, and Philipp Kohlschreiber before losing to Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals in three sets. At the 2018 French Open, Nishikori was seeded 19th. He defeated Maxime Janvier,
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, t ...
, and Gilles Simon before falling to seventh seed Dominic Thiem in the fourth round. In the lead up to Wimbledon, Nishikori lost to Karen Khachanov in the 2nd round at the Halle Open. Entering Wimbledon with continued injury woes, expectations were low for Nishikori to make a deep run. He beat Christian Harrison and Bernard Tomic before upsetting Nick Kyrgios in the 3rd round. In the 4th round, despite facing some elbow pain, Nishikori came from a set down to beat Ernests Gulbis, reaching the quarterfinals of Wimbledon for the first time. Thus, Nishikori had succeeded in reaching the quarterfinals of every grand slam event. In the quarterfinals, he lost to eventual champion
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
in four sets. At the 2018 US Open (tennis), US Open, Nishikori was seeded 21st. He defeated Maximilian Marterer in straight sets in the first round, facing Gaël Monfils in the second. Monfils was forced to retire in the second set after sustaining a wrist injury during the match. Nishikori then defeated 13th seed Diego Schwartzman and Philipp Kohlschreiber to reach his third quarterfinal at the US Open. There, he faced
Marin Čilić Marin Čilić (; born 28 September 1988) is a Croatian professional tennis player. Čilić has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, including a major at the 2014 US Open. He was also runner-up at the 2017 Wimbledon Championships and the 2018 Austral ...
in a rematch of the 2014 US Open – Men's singles, 2014 final. He dropped the first set 2–6, but pulled out a close five-set victory, breaking Čilić in the final game of the fifth set to win 6–4. He advanced to the semifinals, losing to
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
in straight sets, 6–3, 6–4, 6–2. Nishikori was the top seed at the 2018 Moselle Open, Moselle Open. He defeated Peter Gojowczyk and Nikoloz Basilashvili before being upset by qualifier Matthias Bachinger in the semifinals in three sets. He then participated in the 2018 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, Japan Open seeded third, defeating compatriot Yūichi Sugita in the first round,
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, t ...
in the second, fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals, and eighth seed
Richard Gasquet Richard Gabriel Cyr Gasquet (; born 18 June 1986) is a French professional tennis player. His career-high ATP singles ranking is world No. 7, attained on 9 July 2007. He has won a total of 15 singles titles on the ATP Tour. His best performances ...
in the semifinals. In the final, he was upset by unseeded Daniil Medvedev. At the 2018 Shanghai Rolex Masters, Shanghai Masters, Nishikori was seeded eighth, defeating Wu Yibing and
Sam Querrey Samuel Austin Querrey (; born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on February 26, 2018, and won ten ATP singles titles. Known for his powerful serve ...
to reach the quarterfinals, where he was defeated by top seed and defending champion
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
. At the 2018 Erste Bank Open, Vienna Open, Nishikori was seeded fifth. He defeated Frances Tiafoe, Karen Khachanov, top seed Dominic Thiem, and Mikhail Kukushkin to reach his third final of the year, where he was defeated by second seed Kevin Anderson. At the 2018 Rolex Paris Masters, Paris Masters, Nishikori was seeded tenth. He defeated Adrian Mannarino before facing Kevin Anderson in the third round, this time defeating him in straight sets. He was then defeated by third seed
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
in the quarterfinals. However, by reaching this stage of the tournament, he accrued enough points to secure a spot in the 2018 ATP Finals, ATP Finals. At the 2018 ATP Finals, ATP Finals, Nishikori was seeded seventh. He was drawn in Group
Lleyton Hewitt Lleyton Glynn Hewitt (born 24 February 1981) is an Australian former world No. 1 tennis player. He is the most recent Australian man to win a major singles title, with two at the 2001 US Open and 2002 Wimbledon Championships. In November 200 ...
and faced second seed
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
in his first match, defeating him in straight sets. This was Nishikori's first victory over Federer since 2014 and ended a six-match losing streak against him. He was eliminated in the group stage after losing his next two matches against Kevin Anderson and Dominic Thiem. He ended the season ranked World No. 9.


2019: First title since 2016

Nishikori started his 2019 season at the 2019 Brisbane International, Brisbane International, where he was seeded second. He defeated Denis Kudla, sixth seed Grigor Dimitrov, and Jérémy Chardy to reach the final, where he defeated fourth seed Daniil Medvedev in three sets to win the title. This was his first tournament victory since February 2016 and broke his streak of nine consecutive final losses. At the 2019 Australian Open, Australian Open, Nishikori was seeded eighth. In the first round, he faced qualifier Kamil Majchrzak, who was making his Grand Slam main draw debut. Majchrzak took the first two sets in just 90 minutes, before suffering from cramps. Nishikori won 15 of the next 17 games, before Majchrzak retired down 3 games to none in the fifth set. In the second round, he faced Ivo Karlovic, against whom he took the first two sets before dropping the third and fourth. The fifth set proceeded to a tiebreak, which Nishikori won 10–7. In the fourth round, he faced 23rd seed Pablo Carreño Busta. He dropped the first two sets before staging a major comeback, winning the third and fourth and leading by a break in the fifth before failing to serve out the match. Nishikori narrowly forced a tiebreak, trailing until a crucial point at 8–5, in which Busta contested an incorrect late call. The umpire awarded the point to Nishikori, who proceeded to win the tiebreak 10–8. He thus advanced to his fourth Australian Open quarterfinal, where he retired in the second set against
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
. At 2019 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, Rotterdam, Nishikori was the top seed. He defeated Pierre-Hugues Herbert, Ernests Gulbis and Márton Fucsovics before he lost in the semifinals to
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
. At 2019 Dubai Tennis Championships, Dubai, he entered as first seed, defeating
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, t ...
in the first round before being upset by Hubert Hurkacz. At 2019 BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells, he was the sixth seed in the singles draw, defeating Adrian Mannarino before losing again to Hubert Hurkacz. He also entered the doubles draw, teaming with Máximo González. They lost to Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus (tennis), Michael Venus in the first round. At the 2019 Miami Open, Miami Open, seeded fifth, he lost his first match to Dušan Lajović. At the 2019 Monte-Carlo Masters, Monte-Carlo Masters, Nishikori was defending an appearance in the final, but lost to Pierre-Hugues Herbert in the second round. At 2019 Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell, Barcelona, he entered seeded fourth, defeating Taylor Fritz, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Roberto Carballés Baena, being defeated by Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals. At the 2019 Mutua Madrid Open, Madrid Masters, he was seeded sixth. He defeated Hugo Dellien before losing to
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
in the third round. At 2019 Italian Open (tennis), Rome, he entered as sixth seed, defeating Taylor Fritz and Jan-Lennard Struff before losing to Diego Schwartzman in the quarterfinals. At the 2019 French Open, French Open, Nishikori was the seventh seed. He defeated Quentin Halys and
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (; born 17 April 1985) is a French former professional tennis player. He was ranked as high as world No. 5 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he achieved in February 2012. Tsonga won 18 singles titles on th ...
before defeating Laslo Đere and
Benoît Paire Benoît Paire (; born 8 May 1989) is a French professional tennis player. His best result in a Grand Slam has been reaching the fourth round, which he has achieved on four occasions. He has won three singles titles, at the 2015 Swedish Open, t ...
in tight five-set matches in the third and fourth rounds, respectively. In the quarterfinals, he was defeated in straight sets by defending champion
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
, who went on to defend his title. At 2019 Wimbledon Championships, Wimbledon, Nishikori was seeded eighth. He reached the fourth round without dropping a set, defeating Thiago Monteiro (tennis), Thiago Monteiro, Cameron Norrie, and Steve Johnson (tennis), Steve Johnson. He dropped a set against Mikhail Kukushkin in the fourth round, but won the match in four, reaching the quarterfinals at Wimbledon for the second consecutive year. He was defeated in four sets by
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
.


2021: Return, two ATP 500 quarterfinals & semifinal, first top 10 win in 3 years

Nishikori started his year playing in the 2021 ATP Cup, losing both of his singles matches to Daniil Medvedev and Diego Schwartzman. At the 2021 Australian Open – Men's singles, Australian Open, Nishikori lost in the first round to Pablo Carreño Busta in straight sets. Nishikori made his first quarterfinal since 2019 Wimbledon Championships, Wimbledon 2019 in 2021 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament, Rotterdam, after beating 7th seed Félix Auger-Aliassime and Alex de Minaur. He lost to Borna Ćorić in 2 tiebreak sets. He also made the quarterfinals in 2021 Dubai Tennis Championships – Men's singles, Dubai, beating Reilly Opelka, 5th seed
David Goffin David Goffin (; born 7 December 1990) is a Belgian professional tennis player. His career-high singles ranking is world No. 7. He is currently the Belgian No. 1, and the first Belgian man to be ranked in the top 10. Goffin has won six ATP titles ...
and Aljaz Bedene. He lost to eventual finalist Lloyd Harris (tennis), Lloyd Harris in 3 sets. Nishikori was seeded at an event for the first time since the 2019 US Open – Men's singles, 2019 US Open in 2021 Miami Open – Men's singles, Miami. Seeded 28th, he once again beat Bedene, but lost in the third round in 3 sets to Stefanos Tsitsipas. Nishikori's clay-court swing also showed progress of his return. His first tournament was 2021 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell – Singles, Barcelona, where after beating Guido Pella and 13th seed Cristian Garín, he took a set off
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
before losing in 3 sets. Nishikori reached the second round in 2021 Mutua Madrid Open – Men's singles, Madrid, and the third round in 2021 Italian Open – Men's singles, Rome, losing both matches to Alexander Zverev. He recorded his best Grand Slam result in over a year at the 2021 French Open – Men's singles, French Open, beating Alessandro Giannessi and 23rd seed Karen Khachanov in 5 sets. After his third round opponent, Henri Laaksonen retired, he progressed to the fourth round, losing once again to Zverev. His grass court swing was much more quiet, losing in 2021 Halle Open – Singles, Halle to Sebastian Korda and in 2021 Wimbledon Championships – Men's singles, Wimbledon to Jordan Thompson (tennis), Jordan Thompson. At the Tennis at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's singles, Olympics, Nishikori recorded his first top 10 win since 2018 by beating Andrey Rublev (tennis), Andrey Rublev in straight sets in the first round. He also beat Marcos Giron and Ilya Ivashka to reach the quarterfinals, where he lost in straight sets to
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
. Nishikori then participated in 2021 Citi Open – Singles, Washington, where he beat
Sam Querrey Samuel Austin Querrey (; born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional tennis player. He reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 11 achieved on February 26, 2018, and won ten ATP singles titles. Known for his powerful serve ...
and 9th seed Alexander Bublik in straight sets. He then beat Cameron Norrie to reach the quarterfinals. There, he beat Lloyd Harris (tennis), Lloyd Harris in straight sets to advance to the semifinals. He lost to Mackenzie McDonald in 3 sets.


2022: Hip surgery

On January 25, 2022 Kei Nishikori announced that he will be undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left hip and will be aiming to come back on tour in about six months.


2023: Projected Comeback

Nishikori announced he was aiming to be able to return for the 2023 Australian Open, stating that he has a 'strong desire' to return.


National representation


Davis Cup

Nishikori made his Davis Cup debut for Japan Davis Cup team, Japan in April 2008 in the 2008 Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I, Asia/Oceania Zone Group I semifinal against India Davis Cup team, India in New Delhi. He was 18 years and 104 days old, the youngest player to play for Japan. He played the singles rubber on the first day, but lost to Rohan Bopanna in five sets. He then defeated Mahesh Bhupathi in a dead rubber to record his first Davis Cup match win. To date, Nishikori has compiled a 19–3 win–loss record overall (17–3 in singles and 2–0 in doubles). In the 2014 Davis Cup World Group first round in Tokyo, Japan defeated Canada Davis Cup team, Canada 4–1, and Nishikori had a hand in three Japan victories in the tie. He beat Peter Polansky and Frank Dancevic in the singles rubbers, and teamed up with Yasutaka Uchiyama for a victory in doubles over Dancevic and Daniel Nestor. Japan advanced to the quarterfinals in the World Group for the first time, but Nishikori missed the quarterfinal against Czech Republic Davis Cup team, Czech Republic due to a left groin injury.


Olympics

Nishikori represented Japan at his maiden Olympics in Tennis at the 2008 Summer Olympics, Beijing 2008. He lost in the first round to
Rainer Schüttler Rainer Schüttler (; born 25 April 1976) is a German former professional tennis player. Schüttler was the runner-up at the 2003 Australian Open and a semifinalist at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships. He won an Olympic silver medal in double ...
of Germany in three sets. At the Tennis at the 2012 Summer Olympics, London 2012 Olympics, Nishikori competed in the singles and doubles competitions, partnering
Go Soeda is a former professional Japanese tennis player. He started playing tennis at the age of four and turned professional in April 2003. He has won 18 singles titles on the ATP Challenger Tour, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of w ...
. In the singles, as the 15th seed, he reached the quarterfinals, knocking out Bernard Tomic, Nikolay Davydenko, and fourth seed
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
on the way. He became the first Japanese man to reach the quarterfinals since Takeichi Harada in the 1924 Paris Olympics. However, his run was ended by eighth seed
Juan Martín del Potro Juan Martín del Potro () (born 23 September 1988) is an Argentine inactive professional tennis player. Del Potro's biggest achievement is a major title: the 2009 US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and the five-time defen ...
of Argentina. In doubles, Nishikori and Soeda were eliminated in the first round by Switzerland's defending champions
Roger Federer Roger Federer (; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players#Weeks at No. 1, world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks, in ...
and
Stan Wawrinka Stanislas "Stan" Wawrinka (; born 28 March 1985) is a Swiss professional tennis player. He reached a career-high Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of world No. 3 for the first time on 27 January 2014. His career highlight ...
. Fresh from his Rogers Cup finals appearance in Toronto, Nishikori represented Japan at the Tennis at the 2016 Summer Olympics, Rio 2016 Olympics, where he was seeded fourth. In the semifinals, he lost to
Andy Murray Sir Andrew Barron Murray (born 15 May 1987) is a British professional tennis player from Scotland. He was ranked world No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 41 weeks, and finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2016. Murray h ...
and faced
Rafael Nadal Rafael Nadal Parera (, ; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 2 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He has been ranked List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis ...
for the bronze medal match, which he won in three sets; it was the first Olympic tennis medal for Japan in 96 years.


Rivalries


Nishikori vs. Wawrinka

Nishikori and Wawrinka have met eleven times, with Nishikori trailing 4–7. Wawrinka won both of their first two meetings in 2012, in the third round of the Cincinnati Masters and in the quarterfinals of Buenos Aires, respectively. Nishikori recorded his first win against Wawrinka in the quarterfinals of the 2014 US Open in a thrilling five-set match; Nishikori later became the finalist of the tournament. They met in another Grand Slam quarterfinal, this time at the 2015 Australian Open. Wawrinka beat Nishikori in straight sets. They met three times in 2016. Nishikori won two of those meetings. They both qualified for the 2016 ATP World Tour Finals and were drawn in the same group. Nishikori defeated Wawrinka in their round-robin match. Wawrinka won their most recent meeting at the 2019 Mutua Madrid Open, 2019 Madrid Open.


Nishikori vs. Raonic

Nishikori and Raonic have met seven times, with Nishikori leading their head-to-head 5–2. They met once in 2012, four times in 2014, and twice during the 2015 season. At their first meeting in the 2012 Rakuten Japan Open final, Nishikori won in three sets. Their first meeting in 2014 was at the Madrid Masters, with Nishikori winning in two tiebreak sets. At Wimbledon in 2014 in the fourth round, Raonic scored his first win against Nishikori, beating him in four sets to advance to the quarterfinals. They met again in the US Open fourth round, where the match tied the all-time latest finish for a match at the US Open with Nishikori prevailing in five tight sets; the match lasted 4 hours and 19 minutes. They had a rematch of their 2012 final in the Rakuten Japan Open 2014 final, where Nishikori won again in three sets. In 2015, the duo first met at the Brisbane International, with Raonic prevailing in three tiebreaks. This was followed later on in the same year in the Davis Cup, where Nishikori won in another epic five-setter to keep Japan's hopes for a quarterfinal place alive.


Nishikori vs. Ferrer

Nishikori and the now-retired
David Ferrer David Ferrer Ern (; ; born 2 April 1982) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain Davis Cup team, Spain, Ferrer has won tournaments at all levels on the ATP Tour (ATP Tour 250, ATP 250, ATP Tour ...
met 14 times, with Nishikori leading 10–4. They played for the first time in the 2008 US Open (tennis), 2008 US Open, with Nishikori registering his first win over a top-10 player, beating Ferrer in a five-set thriller as a teenager. From 2011 to 2013, they met four times, with Ferrer winning three times in straight sets and Nishikori winning only once in the 2012 Olympics in three sets. Nishikori turned the tables in their head-to-head play in 2014, winning all four of their encounters. Their first meeting was at the Miami Masters where Nishikori beat Ferrer in three tight sets after saving four match points to progress to the quarterfinals. They next had an epic encounter at the Madrid Open, with Nishikori beating Ferrer in another tight three-setter to progress to the final of a Masters 1000 for the first time in his career. Their next two encounters were in the BNP Paribas Masters and the ATP World Tour Finals, where Nishikori again defeated the Spaniard in three sets. In 2015, Ferrer had a remarkable start to the season, but was beaten in the Australian Open by Nishikori in a dominant straight-sets victory. However, Ferrer ended his losing streak to Nishikori in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel, where he beat Nishikori in straight sets in the final. In Madrid, in the quarterfinals, Nishikori took revenge and beat him in straight sets.


Nishikori vs. Čilić

Nishikori and Cilic have met 16 times, with Nishikori leading 10–6. Cilic won their first ATP World Tour meeting in 2008 at Indian Wells, beating Nishikori in straight sets in the first round. In 2010, Nishikori avenged that loss at the US Open, beating Cilic in a tough five-setter lasting almost five hours. In 2011, they met at the Chennai Open where Nishikori beat Cilic in three sets. In 2012, they encountered each other at the US Open where Cilic avenged his past US Open loss to Nishikori by beating him in four sets to progress to the 4R. In 2013, they met at the Memphis Open where Nishikori beat him in straight sets to progress to the SF and he would later go on to win the title. In 2014, their rivalry was more intense with 3 ATP meetings. They first met in 2014 at the Brisbane International where Nishikori beat him in three sets to book his semifinal spot. They met again at the clay courts of the Barcelona Open where Nishikori dominated Cilic in another straight sets victory where he would later go on to win his first title on clay. Their most significant meeting would be at the 2014 US Open, they met in the finals after Nishikori overpowered world No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Cilic overcame world No. 2 Roger Federer in the semifinals. Their meeting in the final made the 2014 US Open the first Grand Slam where none of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic reached the final since the 2005 Australian Open – Men's singles, 2005 Australian Open. However, Nishikori was defeated in straight sets by an in-form Marin Cilic in the final. In 2015, the pair met in the semifinals of the 2015 Citi Open, with Nishikori coming back from a set down to prevail in three, and gain a place in his 15th career final. They meet again later on in the 2015 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, 2015 Japan Open where Nishikori came back from a set down to defeat Cilic in three tight sets. In 2016, the duo met in the 4th round of the 2016 Wimbledon Championships, 2016 Wimbledon where Nishikori retired mid-match in the 2nd set after losing the first set due to a rib injury which had disrupted his grass season. They met again in the final of the 2016 Swiss Indoors, Swiss Indoors, where Cilic prevailed in straight sets. During the round-robin stage of the Year-End 2016 ATP World Tour Finals, Cilic came from a set down to defeat Nishikori and ultimately prevail. Most recently, Nishikori defeated Cilic in the quarterfinals of the Monte-Carlo Masters by a score of 6–4, 6–7, 6–3. At the 2018 US Open (tennis), 2018 US Open, Nishikori and Cilic again met in the quarterfinals. In a five set thriller, Nishikori won a spot in the semifinal of the US Open for only the third time (and only the third time advancing past the quarters in any of the four majors).


Equipment and endorsements

Nishikori has endorsed the Wilson Sporting Goods, Wilson Wilson Burn 95; however, it is believed by racquet enthusiasts that he used an older modified Wilson Sporting Goods, Wilson nCode nTour underneath the Steam paint job. In the past, special versions of the Steam racquet have been sold by Wilson, exclusively in Japan, capitalizing on Nishikori's popularity in his home country. Most recently, in 2012 the Steam Pro was available for sale, and was advertised as having the same specifications as Nishikori's actual racquet. From the 2015 to the 2018 season, Nishikori used the Wilson Burn 95. As of 2019, after the dismissal of the Burn line, Nishikori currently endorses the Wilson Ultra 95. He wears Uniqlo clothing and as of the beginning of 2017 red Nike, Inc., Nike Vapor Tour shoes after having played for almost a decade in Adidas. He is also sponsored by Nissin Foods, TAG Heuer, Fast Retailing, LVMH, LVMH Moët Hennessy, Japanese financial services firm Jaccs Co., Wowow, mattress topper Air Weave, Electronic Arts, EA Games, Delta Air Lines and Japan Airlines, in a deal which has his image emblazoned on a Boeing 777-300ER dubbed "JET-KEI". He is often seen wearing a Cup Noodles badge on his sleeve during matches. In 2011, he filmed a commercial for Morinaga & Company's sports drink Weider in Jelly. He also carries around a character called Mr. Saturn from the popular video game ''EarthBound (series), Mother / Earthbound''.


Playing style

With solid and consistent shots on both wings, Nishikori plays most comfortably at the baseline, using dominating groundstrokes to push his opponents around and hit winners. He can generate a lot of pace, especially on his flat backhand, while his Western forehand is accurate and consistent. However, he also has the ability to play defensively and hit consistently to wear out his opponents. Because of this, many people have commented that he has the offensive ability of Fernando González and the defensive skills of
Novak Djokovic Novak Djokovic ( sr-Cyrl, Новак Ђоковић, translit=Novak Đoković, ; born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player. He has been ranked world No. 1 for a record total 373 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 ...
. Many critics and fellow players have said that Nishikori's two handed backhand is one of the best on the tour, on par with that of Djokovic and Andy Murray, Murray. Under the coaching of
Michael Chang Michael Te-pei Chang (born February 22, 1972) is an American former professional tennis player and coach. He is the youngest man in history to win a singles major, winning the 1989 French Open at 17 years and 109 days old. Chang won a total o ...
, Nishikori has gained the habit of taking balls earlier without compromising consistency, reminiscent of Andre Agassi, allowing him to take time away from his opponents. Nishikori has a slightly unusual style of hitting groundstrokes on both wings, winding up the racket with a short but compact backswing, and hitting the ball right at its peak. These make his groundstrokes powerful, accurate and unpredictable due to the delayed backswing, which prevents opponents from anticipating which direction the ball will go. He has also been praised for his return of serves, which he executes well due to his ability to take them quickly. He is known to hit winners off return of serves with strong and accurate groundstrokes. Although his serve is not exceptionally strong, it is consistent enough to prevent opponents from easily winning points off it. He has a flat first serve that can reach speeds of up to 120 mph and employs a topspin second serve. Nishikori holds one of the highest percentages of deciding set wins in the open era.


Career statistics


Grand Slam tournament performance timeline


Grand Slam finals


Singles: 1 (1 runner-up)


References


External links

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ATP Heritage: Project 45 No Longer A Secret
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nishikori, Kei 1989 births Living people Japanese male tennis players Olympic tennis players of Japan Olympic medalists in tennis Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for Japan Tennis players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 2012 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 2016 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 2020 Summer Olympics Grand Slam (tennis) champions in boys' doubles French Open junior champions Sportspeople from Bradenton, Florida Sportspeople from Shimane Prefecture Japanese expatriate sportspeople in the United States 20th-century Japanese people 21st-century Japanese people