Never-say-die Nishikori into Open quarters after five-set epic

It was Kei Nishikori's third five-setter of the 2019 Australian Open and the second time the never-say-die eighth seed had recovered from two sets behind.

Published : Jan 21, 2019 18:36 IST

Kei Nishikori is into his fourth Australian Open quarterfinals.

Japanese fighter Kei Nishikori recovered from two sets down to reach the Australian Open quarter-finals with an epic win over Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7 (8/10), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4, 7-6 (10/8).

It was Nishikori's third five-setter of the tournament and the second time the never-say-die eighth seed had recovered from two sets behind.

His win over the 23rd seeded Spaniard took a marathon 5hr 5min after an opening set that alone lasted 76 minutes.

The former US Open finalist moves into the quarterfinals for the fourth time where he will face either top-ranked Novak Djokovic or 15th seed Daniil Medvedev.