Dolgopolov defeats Nishikori to clinch Argentina Open title

Kei Nishikori lost a sixth successive final on Sunday as he was beaten in straight sets by Alexandr Dolgopolov.

Alexandr Dolgopolov holds the trophy after winning the final.

Japanese top seed Kei Nishikori lost a sixth successive final on Sunday when he was defeated by Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 in the Buenos Aires clay-court title match.

The World No. 5 had already lost in the Brisbane final in January to Grigor Dimitrov which followed 2016 defeats in tournament deciders in Basel (against Marin Cilic), Toronto (Novak Djokovic), Barcelona (Rafael Nadal) and Miami (Djokovic). For World No. 66 Dolgopolov, it was a third career singles title and first since Washington in 2012.

Nishikori was seeking a 12th career crown but he will get another opportunity next week when he plays as top seed at the Rio clay-court tournament.