Kei Nishikori showed why he is a five-set master on Sunday at Roland Garros.
The former World No. 4 battled from a break down in the decider to defeat Italian Alessandro Giannessi 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the first round on the Parisian clay. Nishikori is now 25-7 in five-setters, which is the best record among active players, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
"The way he fought and the way he played was incredible. I have to give credit to him," Nishikori said. "I think he [played] pretty good tennis today. I thought about losing, especially in five sets. He was up a break first and I was not sure what to do... I will [give] very good credit to him. He played good tennis."
Best Five-Set Records (Active Players)
Giannessi, a qualifier making his Roland Garros main draw debut, earned seven service breaks and led 4-2 in the deciding set. But Nishikori leaned on his experience and fighting spirit to claw back after four hours and three minutes.
"Tennis is not playing by yourself. You always have an opponent, and there are many ups and downs during the match, and [it is] very stressful. You cannot talk to anybody," Nishikori said. "But I know I have to figure out how to win in three sets, and I think I could do that, especially today."
The 31-year-old had a look at a forehand passing shot on his first match point, but missed. However, he did not let slip that game, and Giannessi missed a drop shot to give the World No. 49 the victory. Nishikori hit 56 winners and broke the Italian's serve 10 times to reach the second round.
The 12-time ATP Tour titlist will next play 23rd seed Karen Khachanov, who dismissed Czech lefty Jiri Vesely 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 behind 31 winners. Nishikori leads the pair's ATP Head2Head series 3-2, including a three-set win earlier this clay-court season in Madrid.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Earlier in the day, Roberto Bautista Agut remained perfect in Roland Garros openers when he defeated fellow Spaniard Mario Vilella Martinez 6-4, 6-4, 6-2. The 11th seed hit 22 winners to just 10 unforced errors to reach the second round on the Parisian clay for the ninth consecutive year.
“I think it's very important to start a tournament well. I was very focussed. I was very concentrated. I knew Mario has good weapons, good serve, good forehand, and I had to be very focussed,” Bautista Agut said. “I respected a lot the match. I went into the court very concentrated, and I think I did a great job.”
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Vilella Martinez had come through qualifying, but Bautista Agut was locked in on Court 7. The 33-year-old only dropped his serve once, and he will next play Swiss qualifier Henri Laaksonen, who eliminated German Yannick Hanfmann 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.
"I actually like his game. I love how he plays. He's a really tough competitor. He doesn't give anything for free," Laaksonen said. "I think it's good for me to see how I can compete with him, and I have to do my best, try to be aggressive, and give all that I have."
The former World No. 4 battled from a break down in the decider to defeat Italian Alessandro Giannessi 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the first round on the Parisian clay. Nishikori is now 25-7 in five-setters, which is the best record among active players, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
"The way he fought and the way he played was incredible. I have to give credit to him," Nishikori said. "I think he [played] pretty good tennis today. I thought about losing, especially in five sets. He was up a break first and I was not sure what to do... I will [give] very good credit to him. He played good tennis."
Best Five-Set Records (Active Players)
| Player | Five-Set Record | Winning% |
| 1) Kei Nishikori | 25-7 | 78.1% |
| 2) Tommy Robredo | 17-5 | 77.3% |
| 3) Novak Djokovic | 33-10 | 76.7% |
| 4) David Goffin | 13-5 | 72.2% |
| 5) Feliciano Lopez | 25-11 | 69.4% |
Giannessi, a qualifier making his Roland Garros main draw debut, earned seven service breaks and led 4-2 in the deciding set. But Nishikori leaned on his experience and fighting spirit to claw back after four hours and three minutes.
"Tennis is not playing by yourself. You always have an opponent, and there are many ups and downs during the match, and [it is] very stressful. You cannot talk to anybody," Nishikori said. "But I know I have to figure out how to win in three sets, and I think I could do that, especially today."
The 31-year-old had a look at a forehand passing shot on his first match point, but missed. However, he did not let slip that game, and Giannessi missed a drop shot to give the World No. 49 the victory. Nishikori hit 56 winners and broke the Italian's serve 10 times to reach the second round.
The 12-time ATP Tour titlist will next play 23rd seed Karen Khachanov, who dismissed Czech lefty Jiri Vesely 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 behind 31 winners. Nishikori leads the pair's ATP Head2Head series 3-2, including a three-set win earlier this clay-court season in Madrid.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Earlier in the day, Roberto Bautista Agut remained perfect in Roland Garros openers when he defeated fellow Spaniard Mario Vilella Martinez 6-4, 6-4, 6-2. The 11th seed hit 22 winners to just 10 unforced errors to reach the second round on the Parisian clay for the ninth consecutive year.
“I think it's very important to start a tournament well. I was very focussed. I was very concentrated. I knew Mario has good weapons, good serve, good forehand, and I had to be very focussed,” Bautista Agut said. “I respected a lot the match. I went into the court very concentrated, and I think I did a great job.”
Follow live scores at RolandGarros.com
Vilella Martinez had come through qualifying, but Bautista Agut was locked in on Court 7. The 33-year-old only dropped his serve once, and he will next play Swiss qualifier Henri Laaksonen, who eliminated German Yannick Hanfmann 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.
"I actually like his game. I love how he plays. He's a really tough competitor. He doesn't give anything for free," Laaksonen said. "I think it's good for me to see how I can compete with him, and I have to do my best, try to be aggressive, and give all that I have."