The Daily Forehand Talks to Kei Nishikori, The Future Of Asian Tennis

WASHINGTON--Everything looked to be going Kei Nishikori's way in 2008.

He won the ATP tournament in Delray Beach as a qualifier, shocking James Blake. Nishikori then backed up that performance months later at the US Open, with a win over then #4 David Ferrer that put him into the fourth round. In early 2009, his ranking reached a career high of #56.

But just as everything was going his way, a right elbow injury kept him out for almost an entire year, from March of 2009 to February of 2010. He won a few big challengers on green clay early in his comeback this year, but has since struggled with some tough draws, and his ranking currently sits at #194.

After a pretty straightforward win in his first round qualifying match against local wild card Junior A. Ore, I talked with Nishikori about his injury, his comeback, Asian tennis on the men's side, and his outlook on the future.

* * *

TDF: You had a great match today--started a little slowly by being broken in the first game, but then it went really fast from there. Was it just some rust after a while off?

Kei Nishikori: I was a little tight, and heavy in the first game. I missed a couple shots I shouldn't--it was an easy game for him. Then I started to get more confident in my strokes, and then suddenly, like, "Boom!" (laughs). Yeah, I was playing well.

TDF: You played Nadal in the first round of Wimbledon, and Djokovic of the second round the French Open. Do you think it's just bad luck with draws--would you have gotten further if you didn't have to face those two Top 3 players so early?

Kei Nishikori: I didn't want to say it, but I've had very tough draws. I had the French against Djokovic, in Queens I had Gasquet, and then Wimbledon against Nadal. But it was good to challenge against them.

TDF: In your comeback this year, you won two challengers already, in Sarasota and Savannah, both on green clay. Those came, I don't want to say easily, but pretty quickly, at least. So you've had success again the challenger level, but what do you think it is going to take to have that success again at the ATP level?

Kei Nishikori: I was a little surprised that I won those two in a row. It was one of my goals to win the challengers. I was still struggling--I had just come back in February. But it gave me confidence. Two in a row--it was really big for me. And in the French, I won the first round in a tough match. But it's a different level, here vs. challenger. I need to have more consistency, and a bigger serve. Gotta work on some things.

TDF: You play a very flashy game, going for a lot of big shots--how do you balance that with consistency? They seem like those two things wouldn't go together well...

Kei Nishikori: (laughs) I'm trying to be more consistent, to not miss easy shots. But yeah, that's my tennis.

TDF: So it's all mental, not missing easy shots?

Kei Nishikori: Yeah, yeah.

TDF: You missed almost a whole year with the injury to your elbow. What did you do during that time? Did you go away from tennis completely, or did you try to stay with it?

Kei Nishikori: No, I couldn't do anything for a couple months. I had surgery in August, and I just did rehab in Japan for two or three months. Yeah, it was really tough without tennis.

TDF: So what did you do during that time without tennis?

Kei Nishikori: Nothing, just training. I did hit some with my left hand, since I had surgery on my right elbow.

TDF: You think the left-handed training helped at all, with your backhand maybe?

Kei Nishikori: Uh, a little bit (laughs).

TDF: This is only your second tournament since Wimbledon, after qualifying in LA last week. Why did you decide to take the time off instead of playing Newport, or Atlanta maybe?

Kei Nishikori: I wanted more training, to get my body healthy. I had a little issue with my elbow. Right now it's fine, I just wanted to train more.

TDF: You had a bunch of big results in 2008--you won Delray Beach, and you made the fourth round of the US Open. How does having that success early in your career, even though it was a while ago, help you now? Are you able to draw back on it at all? When you look back on it, what do you think?

Kei Nishikori: Now, it's tough. It's tough to think about winning ATP tournaments again. You know, I did it once already, and played well at the US Open. I still think I can do it soon.

TDF: You think you're close to being able to do it again?

Kei Nishikori: Not close, but hopefully in a couple months or next year.

TDF: So you don't see it happening in this year's US Open, for example?

Kei Nishikori: Um, I'll try (laughs).

TDF: You're the main face of the sport in Japan now, especially with Ai Sugiyama and Shinobu Asagoe retiring. It's you, and I guess Ayumi Morita, also. Does it make you feel more pressure not having many other players from your country at this level?

Kei Nishikori: Um, no, not much. One guy is top 100 right now, and I live in the States, so I don't hear much news from Japan.

TDF: And there's a lot of coverage of you there, right?

Kei Nishikori: Umm, yeah (laughs).

TDF: Is it distracting when you're there? You haven't played there in a while, but when you are there is it tough with all the press all the time?

Kei Nishikori: Yeah, of course, it's tough. I get pressure every year. But at the same time it's fun to play in front of the fans, and my family.

TDF: You're on Twitter, and you have like 3,000+ followers on there. What do you use Twitter for, mostly?

Kei Nishikori: It's just for fun, mostly. It's good to hear from the fans, I get energy from it.

TDF: It seems like with Asian tennis, at this point in time, the women have had a lot more success than the men, especially the Chinese women, with two making the semifinals of the Australian Open this year. Why do you think that is, that Asian women have gotten to the top faster than Asian men?

Kei Nishikori: Um, for the Asian people, it's tough to come to Europe and the States. If you're a man, you have to play with top guys. But if you're a woman, you can practice with a lot of men, or even, I don't want to say, high school players. So for men it's tougher.

TDF: So for men it's just tougher to find people good enough to practice with in Asia?

Kei Nishikori: Yeah, I think so.

TDF: You play Kevin Anderson in the next round, which is a real tough match for qualifying. Do you think it's good to have a challenge, or would you rather play someone you've never heard of?

Kei Nishikori: (laughs) There's nothing I can do. If I get an easy draw, it's better, but there's nothing I can do. I know he's been playing well the last couple months, and he has a good serve. It's gonna be a tough match, but I'm gonna do what I can do.

TDF: And lastly, what are your goals for the rest of the year?

Kei Nishikori: Top 100, as soon as possible. Right now I'm around 200, so for this year, just get to top 100.

* * *

Thanks to Kei for talking to us, and we certainly wish him luck in this tournament and beyond.  His comeback will definitely be an interesting storyline to follow for the rest of this year, and hopefully he's able to meet and exceed his expectations.