On a day when most of the highest seeded players comfortably progressed to the third round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, Kei Nishikori delivered a timely reminder that he still belongs in that company.
Nishikori, the former world No 4 now ranked 40, thoroughly deserved his 6-3, 7-6 win over Belgian fifth seed David Goffin on Tuesday. It was his fourth win over Goffin from as many meetings.
The 31-year-old from Japan has spent most of his illustrious career among the top seeds but multiple injuries over the past few years have caused the inevitable setbacks.
His form in Dubai so far, though, is providing encouraging signs that Nishikori can continue to trend upward.
After beating the tall, big-serving Reilly Opelka in the first round, he then defeated the diminutive, quick baseliner Goffin. Two vastly opposing playing styles, two wins for Nishikori.
Granted, he made it difficult for himself having served twice for the victory only to get broken, but Nishikori more than made up for it in a dominant tiebreak.
“I was a little bit tight especially on match point," he said. "He started to play much better from the middle of the second set and I had plenty of pressure on my serve. He was stepping up a little more and playing more aggressive, which made me more defensive. It was a close game and I think if it went three sets it would’ve been much tougher.”
For Nishikori, every victory takes him another step closer to recapturing past glories. A 12-time winner on the ATP Tour, a Grand Slam finalist, and Olympic bronze medallist, Nishikori has already achieved more in his career than most players can dream. As a superstar in his native Japan, he's also earned a few dollars over the years, too.
Still, he insists he is far from finished and believes his injury setbacks are just a precursor to the next chapter of his career. Next up for the 2014 US Open finalist in Dubai is Slovenia's Aljaz Bedene.
"I just think of it as a second journey," said Nishikoro, who next faces Slovenia's Aljaz Bedene. "I had an elbow surgery two years ago and a shoulder injury end of last year so I couldn’t play for three to four months. I've had many injuries.
"I’ve got to be happy, though. I’ve been playing well the last two weeks. For sure, my goal is to get back to top 10, top five hopefully. I know it’s going to be a long road because everyone is playing well.”
Earlier on Centre Court, third seed Denis Shapovalov got his Dubai debut up and running in emphatic style by thrashing Jan-Lennard Struff 6-1, 6-3.
Germany's Struff reached last year's quarter-finals and had won their previous four meetings, so this was hardly an ideal matchup for the 21-year-old Canadian. As it transpired, Shapovalov cruised to victory in just over an hour to set up a third round tie with Polish 13th seed Hubert Hurkacz.
"I've had difficulties with him in the past, so I knew it was going to be a tough match for me," the world No 12 said. "But I feel any match is a new match and it's always starting from zero so the past doesn't really mean much.
"I definitely played very well. I was just trying to pick my target on my serve to be honest, playing the way I've been playing in practise. I didn't really change my game plan compared to the other times I played him."
Following Shapovalov on to Centre Court, second seed Andrey Rublev also punched his ticket into the third round, but the Russian faced a sterner test from Finnish qualifier Emil Ruusuvuori in his 6-4, 6-4 win that contained a single break of serve in each set.
The world No 8 will play American Taylor Fritz for a placei n the quarter-finals after the 15th seed edged out Georgia's Nikoloz Basilashvili.
In the final match of the day, top seed Dominic Thiem slumped to a shock defeat. The Austrian world No 4 and reigning US Open champion went down 6-3, 6-4 to South African qualifier Lloyd Harris.
RECORD%20BREAKER
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Honeymoonish
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Roll of honour 2019-2020
Dubai Rugby Sevens
Winners: Dubai Hurricanes
Runners up: Bahrain
West Asia Premiership
Winners: Bahrain
Runners up: UAE Premiership
UAE Premiership
Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes
UAE Division One
Winners: Abu Dhabi Saracens
Runners up: Dubai Hurricanes II
UAE Division Two
Winners: Barrelhouse
Runners up: RAK Rugby
The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company%20profile
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MATCH INFO
RB Leipzig 2 (Klostermann 24', Schick 68')
Hertha Berlin 2 (Grujic 9', Piatek 82' pen)
Man of the match Matheus Cunha (Hertha Berlin
Getting there
The flights
Flydubai operates up to seven flights a week to Helsinki. Return fares to Helsinki from Dubai start from Dh1,545 in Economy and Dh7,560 in Business Class.
The stay
Golden Crown Igloos in Levi offer stays from Dh1,215 per person per night for a superior igloo; www.leviniglut.net
Panorama Hotel in Levi is conveniently located at the top of Levi fell, a short walk from the gondola. Stays start from Dh292 per night based on two people sharing; www. golevi.fi/en/accommodation/hotel-levi-panorama
Arctic Treehouse Hotel in Rovaniemi offers stays from Dh1,379 per night based on two people sharing; www.arctictreehousehotel.com
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Thursday (All UAE kick-off times)
Sevilla v Real Betis (midnight)
Friday
Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)
Valencia v Levante (midnight)
Saturday
Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)
Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)
Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)
Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday
Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)
Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)
The view from The National
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Tuesday (UAE kick-off times)
Leicester City v Brighton (9pm)
Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham United (11.15pm)
Wednesday
Manchester United v Sheffield United (9pm)
Newcastle United v Aston Villa (9pm)
Norwich City v Everton (9pm)
Wolves v Bournemouth (9pm)
Liverpool v Crystal Palace (11.15pm)
Thursday
Burnley v Watford (9pm)
Southampton v Arsenal (9pm)
Chelsea v Manchester City (11.15pm)
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
THE TWIN BIO
Their favourite city: Dubai
Their favourite food: Khaleeji
Their favourite past-time : walking on the beach
Their favorite quote: ‘we rise by lifting others’ by Robert Ingersoll
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 2 (Mahrez 04', Ake 84')
Leicester City 5 (Vardy 37' pen, 54', 58' pen, Maddison 77', Tielemans 88' pen)
Man of the match: Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
MATCH STATS
Wolves 0
Aston Villa 1 (El Ghazi 90 4' pen)
Red cards: Joao Moutinho (Wolves); Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa)
Man of the match: Emi Martinez (Aston Villa)
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 720hp
Torque: 770Nm
Price: Dh1,100,000
On sale: now
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The%20Genius%20of%20Their%20Age
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CABINET%20OF%20CURIOSITIES%20EPISODE%201%3A%20LOT%2036
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2021 World Triathlon Championship Series
May 15: Yokohama, Japan
June 5: Leeds, UK
June 24: Montreal, Canada
July 10: Hamburg, Germany
Aug 17-22: Edmonton, Canada (World Triathlon Championship Final)
Nov 5-6 : Abu Dhabi, UAE
Date TBC: Chengdu, China
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
