US Open Tennis 2014 Results: Examining Road to Kei Nishikori vs. Marin Cilic

To say that it has been an unpredictable road to the 2014 U.S. Open men's singles final between Kei Nishikori and Marin Cilic would be more than an understatement.

The two double-digit seeds have withstood multiple elite opponents on their respective halves of the draw to make for a final match nobody saw coming even a round before. When Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer both made the semifinals on opposite sides, a No. 1 vs. No. 2 final was expected given the way so many Grand Slams have unfolded in the last decade.

Well, that wasn't the case, and as ESPN Tennis noted, history was made:

"

This is the 1st time since the 2005 Australian Open that a Grand Slam Final doesn't involve either Nadal, Federer, Murray, or Djokovic.

— ESPNTennis (@ESPNTennis) September 6, 2014"

A No. 10 vs. No. 14 final matchup means that either winning will defy huge odds, but a closer look at their respective runs to the title match proves that Nishikori or Cilic—whoever wins out of the two—will be a worthy champion.

Take a look at Nishikori and Cilic's roads to the final.

Date	Matchup	Time (ET)	TV
Monday, Sept. 8	No. 10 Kei Nishikori vs. No. 14 Marin Cilic	5 p.m.	CBS

Kei Nishikori

Round	Opponent	Score
1	Wayne Odesnik	6-2, 6-4, 6-2
2	Pablo Andujar	6-4, 6-1 (ret.)
3	No. 23 Leonardo Mayer	6-4, 6-2, 6-3
4	No. 5 Milos Raonic	4-6, 7-6, 6-7, 7-5, 6-4
Q	No. 3 Stan Wawrinka	3-6, 7-5, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4
S	No. 1 Novak Djokovic	6-4, 1-6, 7-6, 6-3

Nishikori has been turning heads for much of the 2014 season, but he couldn't have expected his run at Flushing Meadows to take him this far.

It started quietly, but the Japanese standout made it clear in the early goings that he was in for a long stay in New York with a handful of lopsided wins to start out. 

He defeated Wayne Odesnik in straight sets in the first round, and his second-round win over Pablo Andujar didn't even go three sets before Andujar retired. Nishikori continued to avoid losing a single set in the third round, when he topped his first seeded opponent in No. 23 Leonardo Mayer. 

Alex Goodlett/Getty Images

Keeping his straight-set streak going any longer through elite competition just wasn't in the cards, but Nishikori then proved he could win the dogfights, too.

He lost his opening set against No. 5 Milos Raonic, but Nishikori then furiously raced back into the match and won it in five thrilling sets. Nishikori went down a set against No. 3 Stan Wawrinka in the quarters, too, but it didn't much matter when he got his legs back under him and ran Wawrinka out of New York.

But none of his performances held a candle to his massive upset over the top seed. Nishikori was mounds better than Djokovic in his four-set semifinal win, punishing his opponent with peak speed and powerful forehand winners that the Serbian couldn't keep up with.

Nishikori was admittedly somewhat surprised after his run took him to Monday's final.

"Maybe a little bit (surprised), but not too much," Nishikori said in his post-match interview. "You know, I was ready to play, you know, these kind of players always. Especially this year I have been playing really well. I went to final in Masters once and, you know, I have been beating those top guys already."

There isn't a player on the planet faster than Nishikori right now, and when he puts that together with such a strong game, he can throw any opponent out of his rhythm. That, along with great conditioning and a focus on the most important points, has propelled him on this historic run.

Cilic is a bigger, more powerful but slower opponent that Nishikori should maintain these advantages against. 

Marin Cilic

Round	Opponent	Score
1	Marcos Baghdatis	6-3, 3-1 (ret.)
2	Illya Marchenko	7-6, 6-2, 6-4
3	No. 18 Kevin Anderson	6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
4	No. 26 Gilles Simon	5-7, 7-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
Q	No. 6 Tomas Berdych	6-2, 6-4, 7-6
S	No. 2 Roger Federer	6-3. 6-4, 6-4

Although similar in many ways, Cilic's run to the U.S. Open final has also had its differences from Nishikori's.

Cilic had little trouble getting past his only two unseeded foes. First came Marcos Baghdatis, a match that ended before the culmination of the second set with Baghdatis retiring. He then won in straight sets against Illya Marchenko.

Unlike Nishikori, though, Cilic wasn't able to cruise to early victories in Rounds 3 and 4.

Charles Krupa/Associated Press

The 25-year-old looked more likely to be upset than in position for a long run with a tough matchup against No. 18 Kevin Anderson, but he pulled it out in four sets. No. 26 Gilles Simon proved to be an even bigger test, as the two played in a five-set thriller that Cilic was able to pull out.

Cilic figured to be in for even longer and tougher matches as he headed to the quarterfinal. Instead, he rose his game and dominated.

He posted a shocking upset of No. 6 Tomas Berdych that was more surprising due to it ending in straight sets, and spectacularly enough, he did the same against second-seeded Federer in the semifinal.

His win set up the unlikeliest of finals, per Tancredi Palmeri:

Seeing a No. 14 seed win so convincingly against two of the world's best players is typically a shock, especially in a Grand Slam event. But for anyone who has watched Cilic's game over these past few weeks, him still being alive shouldn't be too much of a surprise. 

He boasts one of the most powerful serves in the game, and he can prove to be unstoppable when maintaining his focus and staying active on long points. So far in Flushing Meadows, he's doing that and then some.

Cilic will have his hands full keeping up with Nishikori's pace, but an advantage in power could propel him to his first ever Grand Slam.