Match ReportFormer World No. 4 Nishikori saved two match points in third set
January 12, 2025
Peter Staples/ATP Tour
Kei Nishikori is competing at the Australian Open for the first time since 2021. By ATP Staff
Kei Nishikori rallied from two-sets-to-love down for the fifth time in his career on Sunday at the Australian Open, where he saved match points against Brazilian Thiago Monteiro in a first-round epic.
Under the roof on John Cain Arena, the Japanese star was on the brink of falling in straight sets when he faced two match points when serving to stay in the match at 4-5 in the third set.
However, the former No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings refused to surrender, hitting 23 winners and committing just eight unforced errors in sets four and five to earn a 4-6, 6-7(4), 7-5, 6-2, 6-3 after four hours and six minutes.
“It was a really tough one,” Nishikori said. “I almost forgot he had two match points. I tried to stay calm even though I was almost out of the tournament. I just tried to focus on what I can do.
“I almost gave up. Match point and he was playing very good. First and second sets, he was on a roll. He almost deserved to win. But somehow, I fought back.”
WHAT IT MEANS 🤩
Kei Nishikori secures his spot in R2 of the @AustralianOpen 🔥 pic.twitter.com/kya4yZll4D
— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 12, 2025
Nishikori, who now holds a standout 29-8 five-set record, is into the second round of the Australian Open for the first time since 2019, when he advanced to the quarter-finals in Melbourne for the fourth time.
The 35-year-old arrived at the hard-court major off the back of a run to the final at the ATP 250 event in Hong Kong. By reaching his first tour-level final in six years, Nishikori returned to the Top 100 for the first time since June 2022.
Nishikori will next play Tommy Paul or Christopher O’Connell and could meet sixth seed Casper Ruud in the fourth round.
Ruud also survived a dramatic encounter on Day 1. The Norwegian overcame Spaniard Jaume Munar 6-3, 1-6, 7-5, 2-6, 6-1 to reach the second round at the AO for the fourth consecutive year.
Ruud struck 48 winners to 37 unforced errors and produced his best level in the fifth set, winning 93 per cent (13/14) of his first-serve points to earn a three-hour, 24-minute triumph under the roof on Rod Laver Arena.
Casper Ruud in action against Jaume Munar on Sunday. Photo Credit: Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images.
The 26-year-old improved his five-set record to 10-6 with the victory and leads Munar 3-1 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
Ruud, who competed at the United Cup, is a three-time major finalist. However, his best result in Melbourne came in 2021 when he advanced to the fourth round. The 26-year-old will next meet #NextGenATP Czech Jakub Mensik or Georgian qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili.
In other action, Frenchman Arthur Fils earned a 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4, 6-4 win against Otto Virtanen. The 20-year-old, currently at a career-high No. 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings, will next meet countryman Quentin Halys or Australian Adam Walton.
Arthur Fils defeated Otto Virtanen on Sunday at the 2025 Australian Open. Photo Credit: Peter Staples/ATP Tour.
