KEI NISHIKORI IS MISSING THE SAME MOMENTUM HEADING INTO SECOND WORLD TENNIS TOUR FINALS APPEARANCE @ THE 02 ARENA IN LONDON BY RICKY DIMON

Written by: Staff on 8th November 2015

BNP Paribas 2015 Masters Tennis Tournament

KEI NISHIKORI IS MISSING THE SAME MOMENTUM HEADING INTO SECOND WORLD TENNIS TOUR FINALS APPEARANCE @ THE 02 ARENA IN LONDON BY RICKY DIMON

epa05012115 Kei Nishikori of Japan returns the ball to Richard Gasquet of France during their round of sixteen match at the BNP Paribas 2015 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 05 November 2015. EPA/YOAN VALAT |

In the week leading up to the Barclay ATP World Tour Finals, 10sballs.com‘s Ricky Dimon will profile every one of the eight singles qualifiers, starting with No. 8. and culminating with No. 1. Up first is Kei Nishikori, who is making a second consecutive appearance at the O2.

Season in review: Based on both ranking and the fact that his 2015 campaign lacks a defining performance, Nishikori’s season has been slightly less impressive than the previous one. But his record is basically identical. Last year he was 52-12 heading into the World Tour Finals; this time around he is 53-14. The Japanese star, who wrapped up 2014 at fifth in the world and now finds himself at No. 8, captured a 250-point title in Memphis and 500-pointers in Barcelona and Washington, D.C.

Not too much unlike the trend throughout his career, Nishikori’s Grand Slam results were alarmingly hit or miss. He reached quarterfinals at the Australian Open and French Open but lost in the Wimbledon second round to Santiago Giraldo and was upset by Benoit Paire in five sets during first-round action at the U.S. Open.

2015 record: 53-14

Fall record (post-U.S. Open): 7-3

Best tournament: Citi Open title

d. James Duckworth 6-7(8), 6-1, 6-4

d. Leonardo Mayer 6-4, 6-4

d. Sam Groth 6-4, 6-4

d. Marin Cilic 3-6, 6-1, 6-4

d. John Isner 4-6, 6-4, 6-4

Biggest win at different tournament: d. Rafael Nadal 6-2, 6-4 in Montreal quarterfinals

World Tour Finals appearances: 1

World Tour Finals record: 2-2

Best World Tour Finals result: Semifinals (2014)

Record against other World Tour Finals qualifiers: 18-27

vs. Novak Djokovic: 2-4

vs. Andy Murray: 1-5

vs. Roger Federer: 2-3

vs. Stan Wawrinka: 1-3

vs. Rafael Nadal: 1-7

vs. Tomas Berdych: 3-1

vs. David Ferrer: 8-4

Quotable: “I am very excited to go back to London. Being part of the best eight players in the world is a big honor and something I work very hard for every day. This tournament is one of the flagship tournaments of the year for us and I look forward to coming back.”

Outlook: Nishikori is not in the same kind of form prior to London that he enjoyed last year. In 2014, he finished runner-up at the U.S. Open, captured titles in Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo, and made a run to the Paris semifinals. This season he is a mere 5-5 in his last 10 tournament matches dating back to Montreal. The oft-injured competitor retired with a back issue at the recent BNP Paribas Masters but insisted it was more of a precautionary move and that he will be ready to go for London.

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

Topics: 10sballs.com, Kei Nishikori, Ricky Dimon, Sports, Tennis

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10sBalls_com says:

November 8, 2015 at 1:18 pm

-@keinishikori Is Missing The Same Momentum Heading Into Second World #Tennis Tour Finals… by @Dimonator- https://t.co/WhmJ1R8rwh