Kei Nishikori defeates lucky loser Donald Young 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 in the first round of the Japan Open.
Nishikori had been drawn to face Nicolas Almagro, but the Spanish player withdrew because of illness.
Young, who had lost in qualifying to Ryan Harrison, was given Almagro's spot in the draw just a few hours before walking on court at Ariake Colosseum.
Young took the first set against the fifth-ranked Nishikori but couldn't capitalize. The fifth-ranked Nishikori twice broke on double faults by Young in the closing stages and extended his career record over the American to 4-0.
"I was missing too much in the beginning, I should have hit with more top spin," Nishikori said. "He was playing aggressive, coming in a lot, and I was hitting too short. In the second set, he started to slow down a bit and I started playing more deep, more aggressive, and started using my forehand more."
Next up for Nishikori is Joao Sousa, who beat Martin Klizan 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Info from Reuters
