IMG coach reveals what impressed him when he first saw Kei Nishikori

IMG Academy strength & conditioning coach Yutaka Nakamura was impressed with Kei Nishikori's prediction ability when he first saw the Japanese. 

Nishikori, 30, arrived to the prestigious tennis academy when he was 14 and that helped him in becoming the player he is today. 

Nishikori, who stands at 5 feet 7 inch tall, moves and covers the court exceptionally well. 

"Kei was thin when he was 14, but he was good at different kinds of movements," Nakamura told webSportiva, as revealed by Seiadoumogera/Twitter.

"Surprisingly, his running speed had much improved just one or two weeks after I started working with him. I realized he needs some goals and that he gets motivated by the sense of purpose.

"His physical ability might be a bit undistinguished, but his prediction ability was outstanding."

Nishikori didn't manage to win a Grand Slam title during his junior days but still it was obvious that he could make himself a nice career as a pro. 

Nishikori, ranked at No. 31 in the world, is already the greatest ever Japanese player. 

Nishikori, who achieved a career-high ranking of No. 4 in the world in 2015, was the first-ever Japanese male tennis player to be ranked inside the top-5 in singles. 

The Japanese claimed his maiden ATP title at the Delray Beach Open in 2008 and since then he has won 11 more titles. 

Nishikori came close to wining his maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open in 2014 but he couldn't beat Croatian Marin Cilic in the final.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2XLZsTV