Kei Nishikori speaks highly of Rafael Nadal ahead of RG clash
Japanese tennis star Kei Nishikori acknowledged he was on the verge of losing to France’s Benoit Paire in the French Open round-of-16 but he didn’t panic in the key moments and ended up making a big comeback.
World No. 38 Paire was twice up by a break in the fifth set but even that wasn’t enough for him as the seventh-seeded Japanese, who blew two match points in the fourth set, eventually claimed a 6-2 6-7 (8) 6-2 6-7 (8) 7-5.
“He almost had it today,” Nishikori said post-match, per the Jiji Press and AFP.
“He served for the match at 5-3 but I just tried to fight and play one point at a time.”
Nishikori and Paire were supposed to end their match on Sunday but they concluded it on Monday afternoon as the match got suspended due to darkness after the Japanese won the third set.
Nishikori will be fighting against record 11-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal for a place in the semi-final.
“It’s going to be a tough match, he’s the greatest ever clay court player,” Nishikori acknowledged.
Nishikori, who also needed five sets to beat Serb Laslo Djere in the third round, admitted to feeling very tired after beating Paire.
“It was long these past two days. I couldn't move well but just fought it out to the end by sheer force of will. Nadal is the toughest opponent on clay, I don't know how much I will recover, but I'm gonna try,” Nishikori admitted.
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2Wnv5nq
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