Kei Nishikori bows out in Tokyo after straight-sets defeat to Tiafoe
Kei Nishikori ended his 19-year professional career with a 6-4, 6-4 defeat to Frances Tiafoe at the Japan Open in Tokyo.
The 36-year-old former world No 4 bowed out at the tournament he won in 2012 and 2014, beaten in straight sets by the world No 8 from the United States BBC. The crowd stayed with him to the last ball.
Nishikori took a lap of honour around the main showcourt after the match. A farewell video was then played on the big screen, featuring messages from Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Michael Chang. Nishikori said he had "kept fighting right to the end" BBC.
His peak came at the 2014 US Open. He beat then-world No 1 Djokovic in the semi-finals to become the first Japanese man to reach a major singles final. Marin Cilic won the final, but Nishikori had already shifted what seemed possible for Japanese men's tennis.
The rest of the record held up. He reached a career-high ranking of No 4 and was the first Japanese man to break into the world's top 10. He won 12 ATP Tour singles titles and collected 40 victories over top-10 players BBC.
He was famously hard to put away. His 72.5% win rate in deciding sets, the final set that decides a tied match, is the third best in ATP Tour history, behind only Bjorn Borg on 73.4% and John McEnroe on 72.8%. That nerve also brought him Olympic bronze at Rio 2016, where he beat Rafael Nadal.
What makes this stand out is where it started. Nishikori first picked up a racket at five and moved to Florida at 14 to train. That journey helped inspire four-time major champion Naomi Osaka, and it gave Tokyo a home player to follow deep into the second week of Slams for more than a decade.
The final season was a struggle. He won a US Open qualifying match in August to extend his Grand Slam career, then lost to compatriot Rei Sakamoto in qualifying. He had announced in late April that 2026 would be his last season Mainichi.
For fans, this means goodbye to a rallyer who turned defence into argument. Long points. Clean timing. No panic. Tokyo gave him the perfect exit.
