Nishikori gets the better of Cilic in U.S. Open rematch

Reuters

Published Aug 08, 2015 09:49PM ET

Nishikori gets the better of Cilic in U.S. Open rematch

(Reuters) - Kei Nishikori exacted a measure of revenge against Marin Cilic when the Japanese world number five overcame the Croatian in the semi-finals of the Citi Open tennis tournament on Saturday in Washington D.C.

Cilic beat Nishkori in the U.S. Open final last year, but after a dismal start the Japanese prevailed 3-6 6-1 6-4.

"I had to make some changes," Nishikori said. "He was playing very well at the start. I raised my game in the second set."

Nishikori will meet American John Isner, who survived a tough challenge from compatriot Steve Johnson in the second semi-final.

Isner defeated the unseeded Johnson 6-3 3-6 7-6 (11-9).

In the third-set tie-break, Isner faced match point at 4-6, but managed to storm back for his eighth consecutive match win and back-to-back finals after his win in Atlanta last weekend.

The 25-year-old Nishikori will be chasing his third win of the year and is already assured of moving up a notch to fourth in the world rankings.

Nishikori fell behind 3-0 in the opening set and could not recover, but rebounded with a dominant second set to level the match against the eighth-ranked Cilic.

In the final set, Nishikori led 3-1 and 4-2 lead but Cilic battled back to draw level at 4-4 before the Japanese won the final two games to beat the Croatian in their first meeting since the Open final.