Unbroken Nishikori back at Japan Open: Why I keep going
The five-time Olympian and Rio 2016 bronze medallist has hobbled through the last few years. But it has not spelled the end for Japan's most successful men's player.
Tennis
Time flies when you’re Nishikori Kei, who is approaching 35 and has spent a huge chunk of the last few years hobbling on the sidelines. The last tour event he won dates back to January 2019 in Brisbane and is currently ranked 200th in the world.
But the five-time Olympian who once climbed to the No. 4 ranking in men's tennis and was one victory away from being a Grand Slam titlist hasn’t given up just yet.
“I think about it like every week but I’m convinced I can track the top 100,” the Rio 2016 bronze medallist said on Tuesday (24 September) at Tokyo’s Ariake Colosseum, ahead of his first Japan Open appearance in six years.
“But I’m still making easy mistakes and need to play the important points better, and don’t think I have much of a chance against the top 10 as things stand. But if I can fix those areas, I do think I have a chance against them on the day. Not sure how long it will take though - it could take forever, it could be tomorrow, so I’m holding on to hope.
“I feel like I’m playing at a decent level right now. I just need to work on the little things which will change things mentally. I need to take my time and continue to get better.”
It's Nishikori Kei vs Marin Cilic again
The injury bug began biting after the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, where Nishikori, as Japan’s most successful men’s singles player of all-time, lost to Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals.
That following October at Indian Wells would be Nishikori’s last appearance since until June 2023 on the Challenger circuit in Puerto Rico as he dealt with an injured left groin and right ankle.
Yet then came the pain in his left knee. His right shoulder was next. Before Nishikori knew it, it was March 2024 when he made his ATP return in Miami. He appeared at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 to little avail. Last week in Chengdu, People’s Republic of China, it was another first-round exit.
Two of the Big Four in men's tennis - who ruled the game during Nishikori's prime - have put down their rackets with Rafael Nadal seemingly nearing the end of his career.
Nishikori, nevertheless, does not look like a defeated man who is ready to pack it in nor desperately clinging on to his past. In fact, he could still pass as a teenager.
“I’ve had a lot of absences. There were periods when I wasn’t playing a lot during my 17 years so to me, it doesn’t feel as long as that,” he said. “I did gain a lot of experience through it all which I like to think has helped me. I hope I can show some of that here.”
In the first round of the Japan Open which he has won twice in the past, Nishikori, as a wild card, will face Marin Cilic in a rematch of the 2014 US Open final - the only trip to the Grand Slam final of his career. Cilic - who has made a recent comeback of his own from injury - won that match in straight sets, all by 6-3.
The clock will undoubtedly turn back for Nishikori against Cilic this week. And he’s hoping it will soon do the same for his game.
“If I had to pick one match I regret, it’s probably that,” Nishikori said. “Not so much because I lost but because I couldn’t play well on that stage, in a Grand Slam final.
“But I also think had I won, I could have gotten a huge head to send my career backwards. Losing the final definitely motivated me to work harder from that point on. That’s for sure.”