Kei Nishikori was struck down with another disappointment in 2021 as he was forced to withdraw from the National Bank Open in Toronto with a shoulder injury. Nishikori was coming off a good run of tennis after a very up and down season. The Japanese player has struggled with form ever since an injury in 2019.
However, he played several good matches back home at the Tokyo Olympics which gave him confidence for the season moving forward. He admitted as much after the event saying the victory over Rublev especially gave him confidence.
That transferred to Washington the next week where Nishikori reached his first semifinal since 2019. He eventually lost to McDonald but it was a sign of things to come. However, disaster struck today when it was announced that Nishikori withdrew hours before his match vs Hurkacz.
The Polish player is through to the final 16 without playing a point this week. For Nishikori, the shoulder injury comes at a very bad time in the season with the US Open looming. He did not offer any comments and the severity of the injury is not know as of now.
Kei Nishikori, who is playing great and sounding much more confident in the last couple of weeks, withdraws from his R2 match vs Hurkacz with a shoulder injury. Hurkacz into the last 16 without playing a point this week, awaits De Minaur or Basilashvili tomorrow.
Kei Nishikori spoke about his #Tokyo2020 experience and resurgence this summer after his R1 win over Miomir Kecmanovic yesterday. #NBO21
