It’s hard to believe it’s 2024, the way Kei Nishikori has been playing this week at the National Bank Open in Montreal. Nishikori had one win over the past calendar year coming into Canada, which came at the French Open this year. It is wholesome to see Nishikori back to his winning ways. When he is healthy, he still has a great game. His career is pretty stellar: Top 5 ranking, 12 ATP titles, US Open finalist, but crushed by injuries.
Nishikori is finally getting his game back! Since his comeback this year, this tournament was the first time he won a set that wasn’t 7-6 or 7-5 against Alex Michelsen. Now, he has defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in two sets for his first Top 20 win since 2021. This is a massive win for Nishikori after his comeback. The 34-year-old Japanese man is not a great mover anymore but his shot-making and returns are still top-notch. He also has one of the best backhands on tour, especially when it comes to the precision of his groundstrokes and ability to change direction.
Nishikori Achieves Rare Feat
With his win over Tsitsipas in the second round, Nishikori becomes the third-lowest ranked player to reach the last 16 of a Masters 1000. The Japanese star was ranked #576 before this win. Only, Darren Cahill (#1013) and Tommy Haas (#882) have been ranked lower than him to achieve this feat. This is the first time Nishikori has looked good this year and what a comeback at 34. He was very solid against Tsitsipas, and sent the ball deep and close to the baseline, whenever he got the chance he either hit a winner or peppered Tsitsipas’ backhand, The Greek couldn’t do much to counter that. Nishikori’s most recent straight sets wins over a Top 11 player before now–Andrey Rublev (2021 Tokyo Olympics), and Roger Federer (2018 ATP Finals).
Nishikori has reached four Masters 1000 finals but has never won one. He lost two finals against Rafael Nadal on clay and two against Novak Djokovic on hard. It doesn’t get more difficult than that. It’s beyond unfortunate that Nishikori was never able to win a Masters 1000. Unlucky to prime at the worst time as a non-all-time-great. He’s probably not winning one at this stage of his career either, although that would indeed be a fairy tale achievement.
Nishikori has aimed to reach the top 100 as his next goal and then top 10 from there. He plans to play some challenger events after Toronto. Looks like the Kei-naissance is on and if he keeps playing at this level, he’ll be a nightmare early draw for a seeded player at the US Open.
Main Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
