In his first singles match since the US Open semi-finals, Kei Nishikori withstood an impressive performance by Donald Young to prevail 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 in the first round of the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2016 on Monday.

The 26-year-old Nishikori is looking to win this ATP World Tour 500 hard-court tournament in Tokyo for the third time this week, following victories in 2012 and 2014, defeating Milos Raonic both times. A good run for the right-hander would also stand him in good stead in the Emirates ATP Race To London. Nishikori is currently fifth in the year-to-date standings, with the Top 8 at the end of the regular season qualifying for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

There was almost a significant setback for Nishikori, though, as Young, a late substitution for an ailing Nicolas Almagro, came close to pulling off an upset against the top seed. The American left-hander played an assertive brand of baseline tennis, not unlike that of his opponent. Using his whippy forehand to good effect, Young saved two break points at 4-4, then shocked the partisan crowd by breaking through on the final point of the opening set.

“I wasn’t hitting enough topspin, and he was playing well. He was in the mood to attack and to come in, and he made all his shots,” Nishikori said. “It’s been a while since I played singles, so I needed some time to get back into the rhythm.”

Despite the setback, Nishikori did not flinch. He showed his mental strength and raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set by playing fearless attacking tennis. With the match level, Nishikori did not let up. The Japanese superstar did not face a break point in the deciding set and served out the match at love to improve to 18-6 in Tokyo.

“He slowed down a little bit and I started to step in and to use my forehand more. I played good tennis in the last two sets,” Nishikori said.

Awaiting Nishikori in the second round is Joao Sousa, who also prevailed against a tricky left-hander after dropping the first set. The Portuguese No. 1 won 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 against Slovakian Martin Klizan. The two players will be meeting for the first time at tour-level.

A runner-up showing at the China Open six years could be David Ferrer’s lucky omen this week as the Spaniard seeks to reach his first ATP World Tour final of 2016. On Monday, he made the first step towards doing so with a 6-4, 7-6(3) victory over Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas.

The fifth seed, having slipped to No. 13 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, extended his FedEx ATP Head2Head record against the Uruguayan to 4-0 in what was the pair’s first clash on hard court. In a match, which featured only one break point between the two, it was Ferrer who made the most of his sole opportunity. 

He broke to take the opening set and secured the result on his second match point in the tie-break against an opponent with two ATP World Tour titles and two runner-up appearances to his name in 2016.

A four-time ATP World Tour semi-finalist this season, Ferrer has had solid runs in Beijing before, finishing runner-up in 2010 and reaching the semi-finals last year – both times losing in straight sets to Novak Djokovic. He next meets either Italian Fabio Fognini or Serbian Viktor Troicki.

Fourth seed Marin Cilic’s Rakuten Japan Open Championships 2016 campaign is off on the right foot after downing last year’s finalist Benoit Paire on Monday. Cilic raced through the opening set in only 20 minutes, but the Frenchman rebounded strongly before succumbing 6-0, 4-6, 6-3 in one hour and 49 minutes. 

Cilic reached the quarter-finals in Tokyo last season before falling to home favourite Kei Nishikori. He will bid to reach his ninth ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season when he next faces either Japan’s Go Soeda or Spain’s Fernando Verdasco.

Paire, who defeated Nick Kyrgios and Nishikori en route to last year’s final, slipped to 1-2 in his FedEx ATP Head2Head series with Cilic, whose superior firepower proved telling on Monday. The Croatian blasted 12 aces and only dropped serve once.

Meanwhile, Paire often found himself under pressure on his delivery. He landed just 45 per cent of first serves and was broken four times. The Frenchman had a final chance to extend the match late in the third set, but netted an aggressive backhand return at 2-4, 30/40 to concede the double break. 

Race To London Continues In Beijing, Tokyo: The Asian circuit on the ATP World Tour continues with 500 level tournaments, the China Open in Beijing and the Rakuten Japan Open in Tokyo. They are two of the 13 ATP World Tour 500 events. Sixteen of the Top 20 players in the Emirates ATP Race To London are in action. In Beijing, Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal and Milos Raonic are the top three seeds. In Tokyo, Kei Nishikori, Gael Monfils and Tomas Berdych are the top trio. Murray has already secured a spot in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London. Raonic is fourth, Nishikori fifth, Monfils sixth, Nadal eighth and Berdych ninth in the Emirates ATP Race To London.

Emirates ATP Race To London: There are 16 of the Top 20 players in the Emirates ATP Race To London standings competing next week. There are five remaining spots to the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London, to be held 13-20 Nov. Here is a look at the Race going into Beijing and Tokyo (bold indicates qualified for Barclays ATP World Tour Finals):

Doubles Race: Six of the Top 10 teams in the Emirates ATP Doubles Team Rankings are in action, led by No. 2 Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares in Tokyo and No. 3 Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan in Beijing. Both teams have qualified for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals along with No. 1 Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut and No. 5 Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez.

500 Wins Leaders: Here is a look at the ATP World Tour 500 level tournament match wins leaders this season:

China Open (Beijing): The China Open features an outstanding field with nine of the Top 20 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, led by World No. 2 Andy Murray, who is looking to challenge Novak Djokovic for year-end No. 1. The other seeds are No. 2/ 2005 winner Rafael Nadal, No. 3 Milos Raonic, No. 4 Dominic Thiem, No. 5 David Ferrer, No. 6 Lucas Pouille, No. 7 Roberto Bautista Agut and No. 8 Richard Gasquet. Pouille is making his Beijing debut while Raonic and Thiem are appearing for the second time.

Murray Top Seed: Murray is making his third appearance at the China Open (5-2), having reached the quarter-finals in his 2010 debut (l. to Ljubicic) and the semi-finals in his last visit in 2014 (l. to Djokovic). The 29-year-old Briton enters with a 55-9 match record on the season (25-6 on hard) and a 4-4 record in finals. He began the first four months of the year with a 13-4 match record and since May has compiled a 42-5 mark, including a career-best 22-match winning streak. He’s won titles at ATP Masters 1000 Rome, London/The Queen’s Club, Wimbledon and a second Olympic gold medal in Rio de Janeiro. Along the way, he reached a personal-best seven finals in a row. The streak ended with a quarter-final loss to Nishikori at the US Open. Murray helped his country to the Davis Cup semi-finals (l. to del Potro, d. Pella). Argentina won 3-2.

Rafa Returns: Nadal is making his fourth straight appearance in Beijing and sixth overall. Nadal is 18-4 in Beijing, winning the title in his debut in 2005 (d. Coria) and reaching the final in 2013 and last year (l. to Djokovic both times). Nadal also advanced to the semi-finals in 2009 (l. to Cilic) and quarter-finals in 2014 (l. to Klizan). The Spaniard has a 37-12 match record on the season, including 16-8 on hard courts. He won titles at ATP Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo and Barcelona and reached the final in Doha. Nadal, who is No. 8 in the Emirates ATP Race To London, is trying to win his first singles title on hard courts since Doha in 2014.

Milos Eyes London: Raonic is looking to secure a spot in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for the second time in three years. Raonic, who is No. 4 in the Emirates ATP Race To London, enters Beijing with a 43-13 match record (23-7 on hard). He won his eighth career ATP World Tour title in the opening week of the season in Brisbane (d. Federer). He also reached finals at ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l. to Djokovic), London/The Queen’s Club and Wimbledon (l. to Murray in both). Last year in his Beijing debut, Raonic lost to Troicki in the first round.

Spanish Title Winners: Four of the seven Spanish ATP World Tour winners this season are in Beijing. Two other Spaniards (Ferrer, Garcia-Lopez) in the draw are trying to win their first title in 2016:

Young Stars Meet: Two of the young stars on the ATP World Tour, wild card and No. 4 seed Dominic Thiem and #NextGen teenager Alexander Zverev meet in the first round. Thiem has won the three previous meetings this season on clay in Munich (SF), Nice (F) and Roland Garros (3R). Thiem is a four-time ATP World Tour winner this season, and he is No. 7 in the Emirates ATP Race To London. Zverev is coming off his maiden ATP World Tour title in St. Petersburg, where he posted back-to-back Top 10 wins in the semi-finals (vs. No. 9 Berdych) and final (vs. No. 3 Wawrinka). The 19-year-old Zverev, who is No. 19 in the Emirates ATP Race To London, is trying to become the first teenager to finish in the Top 20 since Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray in 2006.

First-Time Winners In Draw: Six of the nine first-time winners on the ATP World Tour this season are in the main draw. Here are the first-time winners in alpha order:

Chinese No. 1: Wild card Ze Zhang, who is the No. 1 Chinese player at No. 179 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, takes on Jack Sock in the first round. Zhang is making his fifth main draw appearance at the China Open (4-4 record), having reached the quarter-finals in 2012 and the second round in 2011 and last year. This season, the 26 year old from Nanjing has compiled a 25-20 match record on the ATP Challenger Tour. Last week he made his season debut on the ATP World Tour in Shenzhen (l. to Tipsarevic in 1R).

Bryans Lead Doubles Draw: The top seeds are three-time (2009-10, ‘12) China Open champions Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan. The Bryans have a 13-1 tournament record, and their only loss came in the semi-finals in 2011. This season they have won three titles: Houston, Barcelona and ATP Masters 1000 Rome. The Bryans are No. 3 in the Emirates ATP Doubles Team Rankings. Other Top 10 teams in the draw are No. 6 Treat Huey and Max Mirnyi along with No. 10 Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin. Rafael Nadal, who won a gold medal in doubles at the Rio Olympics (w/M. Lopez), is in the draw (w/Carreno Busta).

Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships (Tokyo): The longest running tournament in Asia on the ATP World Tour, which began in 1972, is led by hometown hero and two-time winner Kei Nishikori, who is the top seed for the first time in Tokyo. The other seeds are No. 2 Gael Monfils, No. 3 Tomas Berdych, No. 4 Marin Cilic, No. 5 David Goffin, No. 6 Nick Kyrgios, No. 7 Ivo Karlovic and No. 8 Feliciano Lopez. Nishikori and Berdych (2008) are the former champions in the draw. Benoit Paire was runner-up last year and Monfils in 2010.

Kei Top Seed: Nishikori is making his ninth tournament appearance (17-6 record). In 2012, he became the first Japanese player to win the Japan Open title, and two years ago he beat Raonic for the second time in the final. The 26-year-old Japanese star is putting together another outstanding season. He enters with a 51-15 match record (34-10 on hard), winning in Memphis for the fourth straight year and reaching finals at ATP Masters 1000 Miami, Barcelona and ATP Masters 1000 Toronto. He also earned a bronze medal at the Rio Olympics (d. Nadal). Nishikori is No. 5 in the Emirates ATP Race To London and he is trying to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for the third straight year (SF in ’14). Coach Michael Chang compiled a 21-12 record in the Japan Open, reaching the final in 1994 (l. to Sampras) and semi-finals in 1991-92 and ’95.

Monfils Aims For London: Monfils is putting together his best season on the ATP World Tour. The 30-year-old Frenchman won the biggest title of his career in July at the 500 level tournament in Washington (d. Karlovic, saved 1 MP). Monfils did not drop a set en route to second career Grand Slam semi-final at the US Open (l. to No. 1 Djokovic in four sets). Afterwards, he returned to the Top 10 on 12 Sept. for the first time since the week of 7 Nov., 2011. After compiling a 21-9 record through June, he has put together a 19-3 mark since July. Monfils advanced to the semi-final at ATP Masters 1000 Toronto (l. to Djokovic) and quarter-final at Rio Olympics (l. to No. 7 Nishikori after holding 3 MPs). He is trying to qualify for his first Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London. He is No. 6 in the Emirates ATP Race To London.

Berdych Is Back: Berdych is making his first appearance in Tokyo since 2012. The 31-year-old Czech Republic native has a 12-4 record in Tokyo, winning the title in 2008 (d. del Potro) and reaching the semi-finals in 2007 (l. to Gasquet). He also was a quarter-finalist in 2009 (l. to Youzhny) and 2012 (l. to Nishikori). Berdych, who won Sunday’s final in Shenzhen (d. Gasquet), is trying to earn a spot in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London. He is No. 9 in the Emirates ATP Race To London.

#NextGen in Tokyo: There are three #NextGen players in the main draw: No. 6 seed Nick Kyrgios, 18-year-old Taylor Fritz and 21-year-old Yoshihito Nishioka. All three are on course to finish with their best year-end Emirates ATP World Tour Ranking. Kyrgios, who is the youngest two-time ATP World Tour winner this season, is ranked No. 15. Fritz, who reached his maiden ATP World Tour final in Memphis, is ranked No. 58, and Nishioka is ranked No. 97. At this time one year ago, on 5 Oct., Fritz was ranked No. 694.

Ivo Eyes Top 20 Finish: The oldest player in the singles draw is 37-year-old Ivo Karlovic, who is making his first appearance in Tokyo since 2012. The No. 2 Croatian (behind No. 11 Cilic) is No. 20 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, and he’s trying to finish in the Top 20 for the first time in his career. His best year-end ranking is No. 22 in 2007. This season he’s won ATP World Tour titles in Newport and Los Cabos. He is 4-3 in Tokyo, reaching the semi-finals in 2007.

Klizan Mr. 500: Top Slovak Martin Klizan returns to Tokyo for the first time since 2012 (l. in first round). Klizan has a 14-11 match record on the season, and he’s won 500 level tournaments in Rotterdam (d. Monfils) and Hamburg (d. Cuevas). In 500 events this year Klizan has a 10-1 match record. Despite his success, Klizan has been bothered by injuries this year. He retired in the first round at Sydney (left shoulder), during the second round at Indian Wells (right foot inflammation) and during the first round at Roland Garros (neck pain). He also missed 10 weeks following ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells due to a right-foot injury.

Local Wild Cards: The top four Japanese players in the Emirates ATP Rankings are in the draw, led by No. 5 Nishikori. The others are wild cards: No. 88 Yuichi Sugita, No. 89 Taro Daniel and No. 97 Yoshihito Nishioka, who advanced to his first ATP World Tour semi-final in Atlanta in August (l. to Kyrgios). The trio are all trying to win their first Japan Open main-draw match. Sugita is 0-4 while Daniel and Nishioka are 0-1.

Murray/Soares Lead Doubles Draw: The top seeds and the No. 2 team in the Emirates ATP Doubles Team Rankings are Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares. This is the first time they are playing together in Tokyo but they have enjoyed success in the past at the Japan Open. Murray won the title with brother Andy in 2011 and Soares captured the title in 2012 (w/Peya). This season Murray/Soares have captured titles in Sydney, the Australian Open and the US Open while reaching finals at ATP Masters 1000 events in Monte-Carlo and Toronto. Other Top 10 teams in the draw are No. 7 Raven Klaasen and Rajeev Ram and No. 8 Henri Kontinen and John Peers.

ICYMI

Tomas Berdych retained the Shenzhen Open title. Read

#NextGen Karen Khachanov celebrated his first ATP World Tour title. Read

First-time duo Fabio Fognini and Robert Lindstedt were unbeatable in Shenzhen. Read

Rajeev Ram and Raven Klaasen grew closer to qualifying for London. Read

In Tokyo, the always entertaining Gael Monfils is ready to… Read

Andy Murray wants to improve on his best season to date in Beijing. Read

Nadal, Pouille are on a collision course in Beijing. Read

Birthdays

5 October – Federico Delbonis (26)

The ATP Challenger Tour event in Orleans, France, has become one of the most popular Challengers among players for its extraordinary attention to detail, right down to the winner’s prize.

Open D’Orleans director Didier Gérard noted that all of the trophies he had won during his career were tucked away in his garage. Determined to make sure his event wouldn’t be forgotten about by its champions, he gained inspiration from the annual tradition by Roland Garros organisers of hiring a painter to create a frame for the tournament’s poster.

Since the first edition of the tournament in 2005, a different artist each year creates two identical, but original pieces of artwork. One piece is given to the singles champion during the trophy ceremony, while the other goes to the tournament and is added to a collection.

“I thought the painting was very beautiful when I first saw it earlier in the week. I’m very happy to win it,” said Pierre-Hugues Herbert after receiving his winner’s painting on Sunday. “It is very original to offer a painting to the winner. It is different from other tournaments and I like it very much. I already know where I will put it in my apartment at home. I’m honoured to have it with my other trophies.”