Kei Nishikori confirms he is one of the top players on clay. The world no. 5 has reached the final in Barcelona to be one step away from defending his title.
The Japanese demolished Klizan 6-1 6-2 in the semifinal in just 77 minutes. Match Stats.
Nishikori: I am delighted to be in the final again
Kei commented “I’m delighted to be playing the final again. You don’t usually play two finals in a row, especially in such a difficult tournament, with many great players. Lifting the trophy here last year gave me a lot of confidence and I think I changed my way of playing on clay.
“I’ve become more aggressive, my service is better and so is my return. I guess my style is becoming more Spanish. I still feel more comfortable on hard court than on clay but these last four matches have been great and I think they’ve helped me improve.”
The final vs. Andujar
Kei will play world no.66 Pablo Andujar in the final. The Spaniard has surprised in the semifinal after beating David Ferrer 7-6 (6) 6-3. Head to head is 2-1 for Kei, but Andujar has won their only encounter on clay (Madrid 2013).
| KEI IS HAPPY… rightly so |
| JAPAN IS RISING! |
