Fighting spirit: despite bad back, Kei Nishikori refuses to back down

—- Kei Nishikori comments after losing Rakuten Japan Open quarterfinal to Nicolas Almagro:

“In the end, my back was so bad I felt I like I couldn’t hit anymore.”

“My back was in pain yesterday during the match also. It’s been bothering me for a while. Lately it’s been getting worse. Sometimes this summer I felt I couldn’t play. Tomorrow, I have to go to Shanghai.”

“I had so many unforced errors. My opponent played very well.”

“It hurts but there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m glad that I could play up until this point.”

“It was hurting two matches earlier. This morning I felt better. I thought it would be OK.”

“The number of matches I played this year was less than other years. So I’ve been wanting to play more late in the season.”

“I haven’t thought about surgery or anything like that. It’s only started hurting recently.”

“I’m lucky that I haven’t had a more serious injury.”

If you like this work, please help cover our operating costs by making a donation, large or small. Thank you!