Nishikori surprised by US Open run

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The world number 11 had struggled with a cyst on his toe ahead of the US Open, and had previously revealed doubts over his decision to enter the tournament.

Nishikori appears to have overcome such worries, however, and on Wednesday the 24-year-old defeated third seed Stanislas Wawrinka in an epic five-set encounter on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

It was Nishikori's second consecutive match to go the distance, after squeezing past Milos Raonic in the fourth round.

And, after setting up a last-four clash with number one seed Novak Djokovic, Nishikori admitted that his form had come as a surprise.

"A little bit, yes," he said following his 3-6 7-5 7-6 (9-7) 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 triumph. "Because especially I didn't play much tennis [after Wimbledon].

"I was doing a lot of fitness training before two weeks, but I wasn't hitting too much. 

"I started [to] play points a few days ago before the tournament.

"It was okay. Yesterday, my body was tight. I was a little bit tired yesterday, but today was almost... not 100 per cent but close to feeling pretty good.

"It's great for my confidence, to play two five sets straight and a lot of 7-6. Yes, it was a tough game, especially after losing the fourth set. 

"It was a very close tie-break, but I was playing much better in third and fourth and I have more confidence to get in the fifth set. 

"So I tried to focus on my service game. I just took one chance in the end."

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