Nishikori to face Sweeting in Houston final

Kei Nishikori defeated Pablo Cuevas 6-3 7-5 and will next met Ryan Sweeting, who upset Ivo Karlovic 7-6 6-3, at the U.S. Clay Court Championship final in Houston.

Sweeting survived three break points in the fourth game and rallied from a 3-2 deficit in the tie breaker with five consecutive points to take the first set.

The American broke to take a 4-2 lead in the second set and closed out the match on serve.

“I feel great here in Houston,” Sweeting said. “Ivo had a three-hour match and was in a little bit of pain out here today. I knew he’d be serving big, but you can’t let that bother you. You’ve just got to take care of your own serve.

“It’s good to get to my first final here in the States and here in Houston.”

"I had trouble with allergies today and I was not at my best," Karlovic admitted after the match. "I could not breathe properly and I felt worse and worse as the match progressed. But all in all it was a good week. Ryan played really well and i wish him all the best in the final."

In their semifinal encounter, Cuevas got the break in the fourth game of the second set but Nishikori broke back in the following game.
Pablo broke again in the sixth game but his opponent recovered by breaking him back in the 11th games. Nishikori saved two break points to close the match with a forehand volley.

“I played great today, grinding away despite not being good on serve. It was tough conditions, hot and humid, but I battled through,” said Nikishori.

Nishikori is currently ranked 61st, but would better Shuzo Matsuoka’s career best of 46th, if he defeats Sweeting, to become Japan's best tennis player in history.

“It’s not like I can promise to win, but with the conditions in Japan I hope I can win tomorrow and give them a little bit of hope. It’s always in my mind but when I play my match I have to concentrate.”


Source Yahoo/ATP