Match: Kei Nishikori v Grigor Dimitrov
Date: 8 January, Sunday
Time: 5pm SGT/2:30pm IST/9am GMT
Competition: Brisbane International 2017
Venue: Queensland Tennis Centre, Brisbane
TV Channel: Fox Sports will provide live TV coverage in Singapore.
Live Streaming: Tennis TV, Tennis Channel Everywhere
Overview
Kei Nishikori will have a shot at claiming his first title in Brisbane as he will be going head-to-head against Grigor Dimitrov in the title clash on Sunday.
The third seed defeated higher-ranked Stanislas Wawrinka in the semi-final on Saturday in straight sets (7-6, 6-3). Despite being stretched in the first set, the Japanese sensation got into his groove in the second and broke Wawrinka's serve twice to upset the second seed.
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Nishikori, who is seeded fifth in the upcoming Australian open tournament, will be high on confidence after beating Wawrinka twice in less than three months. Notably, the Japanese defeated the Spaniard in the ATP World Tour Finals group stage last year, enroute to his semi-final appearance.
An elated Nishikori said that he has had a good start to 2017 and that he was happy to be in the Brisbane final for the first time. He will face lower-ranked Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in the final on Sunday.
"I'm feeling very happy to be in the final tomorrow. I've tried many times and this is the first time to get to Sunday in Brisbane. Especially beating Stan today, it's been a good start to the year," Nishikori said, as quoted by ATP World Tour's official website.
Nishikori has a 3-0 head-to-head advantage over Dimitrov but the latter will also be upbeat after defeating the top seed, Rafael Nadal-slayer Milos Raonic on Saturday. The seventh seed made light work (7-6, 6-2) of his familiar foe, against whom he enjoys a 3-1 head-to-head record.
It will be an uphill task for the Bulgarian against his higher-ranked opponent but Dimitrov believes he can bring out his best on Sunday. Notably, the two players met last July in the quarter-final of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in Toronto, in which Nishikori reigned supreme.
"We played a pretty close match last year. I felt like I had my chance and my momentum. I'm not playing anything next week, so I'm going to get out there and leave it all on the court," Dimitrov said.
TV Schedule
Singapore: Fox Sports
India: Sony ESPN
Malaysia: Fox Sports
Australia: 7TWO
Japan: Tennis Channel
US: beIN Sports
UK: BT Sport
