Kei Nishikori ended his 19-year professional tennis career Thursday night in Tokyo, losing his final match to Frances Tiafoe.
Nishikori first played in Tokyo in 2007 as a 17-year-old ranked No. 253. He trained at the Bollettieri Academy before launching a career built on a mission called "Project 45"—a quest to surpass Shuzo Matsuoka as the highest-ranked Japanese man in tennis history. Nishikori not only achieved this goal but far exceeded it, reaching a peak ranking of No. 4.
He became the first Asian-born man to reach a Grand Slam final, doing so at the 2014 U.S. Open. Over his career, Nishikori secured 12 titles, including his debut professional title in 2008 at Delray Beach when he was 18. He won the Tokyo title twice.
Nishikori recorded 40 wins against Top 10 opponents, including two victories over reigning world No. 1s. His record in five-set matches stood at 27-6, and against Top 10 players in five-setters he was 6-0. He spent 212 weeks inside the Top 10 and reached the quarterfinals or better at Grand Slam events nine times.
Among his significant achievements was defeating Rafael Nadal to win Olympic bronze at the 2016 Rio Games.
Following his retirement, tributes came from across the tennis world. Nadal congratulated Nishikori on an amazing career, saying it was always a pleasure to share the court with him and that Nishikori could be very proud of his achievements and the example he set.
