Djokovic will be accompanied in Rio by the other three Rogers Cup semifinalists Stan Wawrinka, Monfils, and Nishikori.
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Nishikori awaits either world No. 1 and top seed Novak Djokovic of Serbia or 10th-seeded upstart Frenchman Gael Monfils. Djokovic last captured consecutive titles in 2011 and 2012 and also won in 2007.
The fifth-seeded Halep faces American Madison Keys in a rematch of the Romanian player’s three-set victory in the round of 16 at Wimbledon.
Snelling finished fourth in the girls 11-12-year-old high jump at 4 feet, 11 inches and was fifth in the 80-meter hurdles in 12.81 seconds.
Djokovic improved to 25-2 against the fifth-seeded Czech player.
“I trust that everything happens for a reason”, said Djokovic after his defeat. Nishikori manages to tie with the Serb, as he and Djokovic split the first four games to tie at 4-4.
“It’s the biggest event in the history of sport, so to be part of it is already a huge privilege and honour that I will cherish, as I did in Beijing (where he won bronze) and London (where he lost to Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro in the third-place match) Olympic Games”, said Djokovic.
But he failed to consolidate as Nishikori found a solution in the sixth game of the second, making no mistake at triple-break point by ripping a big forehand victor to secure his first break of the match and get back on serve.
Things remained tense in the second set after the two stars were deadlocked 5-5, with Nishikori on the serve.
He accomplished the feat on the strength of his serve, winning 86% of his first-serve points in the opening set and 82% overall. The Japanese player now has 40 wins this season.
But looking at the previous set scores between Djokovic and Nishikori we can take on a correct score wager here that’s more of interest than the 2-0 to the world number one. But Nishikori clawed his way back, breaking the Serbian at 3-3 to take his first lead of the contest. “On hard court he’s been beating me, not easy but two sets [in] Miami, now here”.
“Today I think he raised his level a lot”, Nishikori said (via the Rogers Cup Toronto on Twitter). His win in Toronto also marks the 18th straight time a member of the “Big Four” has won a Masters title. This jovial announcement somewhat carries a silent challenge to defending gold medalist Andy Murray.
The second set was pathetic from the Swiss and it’s Nishikori who goes through to the final, where no doubt he’ll be the next to lose to Novak Djokovic in a Masters 1000 championship match.
Saturday’s win represents a breakthrough for Nishikori, who advances to his first Rogers Cup final after losing in the semis last summer.
In his final moments on Centre Court in Toronto, Djokovic looked out at the crowd and, as he often does, thanked his team and spoke about his love and his appreciation for them during his trophy ceremony speech.
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Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo dominated the service game, as they launch 6 aces against just 2 for Murray and Soares.
