Injury-ravaged Japanese veteran Kei Nishikori reached his first final in six years when China's Shang Juncheng retired ill at the Hong Kong Open on Saturday.

The Japanese star, now 29-8 in five-setters, was joined by Casper Ruud in coming through a decider Sunday in Melbourne.

On Tuesday, Tommy Paul (No. 11 in the world) faces Kei Nishikori (No. 76) in the Round of 64 at the Australian Open. Nishikori was most recently in action on September 29, 2024 at the Rakuten ...