Kei Nishikori will try to take out his third Top-10 player in succession Friday when he crosses rackets with World No. 2 Novak Djokovic on the Stadium Court in the men’s semifinal at the 2014 Sony Open Tennis.
Having already defeated No. 4 David Ferrer (fourth round) and two-time Sony Open champion Roger Federer (in the quarterfinals), Nishikori could face his toughest test yet against the Djokovic who has been in top form himself. The Joker disposed of reigning Sony Open champion Andy Murray in straight set on Wednesday. Even so, the Japanese star should be brimming with confidence after coming back from a set down to shock Federer and improve his record against the all-time great to 2-1.
Djokovic will be looking to get to his fifth final at Crandon Park on his way to what he hopes will be a fourth victory at the Sony.
The semifinal is scheduled for after 3 p.m. at Key Biscayne during a Friday filled with more top-notch tennis action at the Sony Open. The Djokovic-Nishikori match will follow another appearance by Martina Hingis and partner Sabine Lisicki as the doubles pair takes on Cara Black and Sania Mirza in a woman’s doubles semifinal. Hingis and Lisicki scored a thrilling victory in the quarterfinals after saving 7 match points.
The Day Session matches will be followed by a men’s semifinal match featuring No. 7 seed Tomas Berdych facing off against either World No. 1 Rafael Nadal or 11 seed Milos Raonic and the other woman’s doubles semifinal between Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears versus Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina
