ATP World Tour Finals 2014 Results: Day 1 Scores, Highlights and Recap
The finest tennis players from across the globe have battled for weeks and weeks to make it into the eight-man line-up for the ATP World Tour Finals, and it was Kei Nishikori and Roger Federer who both picked up critical wins on the opening day at the O2 Arena in London.
Nishikori has enjoyed a magnificent rise throughout the 2014 season and he had too much for Andy Murray— who was roared on by a raucous London crown—winning 6-4, 6-4. Federer was also a class above his opponent, as Milos Raonic struggled to cope with the imperious Swiss maestro, losing 6-1, 7-6 (0) on his tournament debut.
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Here's a look back at the best of the action from Day 1 in what's set to be an engrossing championships:
| Kei Nishikori (4) | defeats | Andy Murray (5) | 6-4, 6-4 |
| Roger Federer (2) | defeats | Milos Raonic (7) | 6-1, 7-6 |
| Ivan Dodig & Marcelo Melo (7) | defeats | Daniel Nestor & Nenad Zimonjic (2) | 6-3, 7-5 |
| Marcel Granollers & Marc Lopez (6) | defeats | Julien Benneteau & Edouard Roger-Vasselin (4) | 6-4, 6-4 |
Nishikori off to a Flyer
Murray endured a difficult opening match at the end-of-season showpiece, as he lost in straight sets to Nishikori. The Japanese No. 1 was far too good for the home-crowd favourite, producing a display bristling with panache to emerge as a 6-4, 6-4 winner.
The result was shared by the ATP World Tour Twitter account:
Nishikori was making his finals debut at the O2 arena against the experienced Murray, but there were few signs of nerves from the U.S. Open finalist, who played with a real swagger. In the aftermath, the 24-year-old expressed his delight at getting off to the best possible start, per BBC Sport:
"Maybe the beginning a little bit tight, but I started feeling well and the second set was almost perfect.
Good serve, big forehand and I was happy to win the first match. I knew he is very consistent from the baseline so I knew I had to be more aggressive than usual and that's how I won today. It's my goal to go semi-final and final.
"
As Nishikori alluded to, the first set was a very tight affair. Both players broke early on, but the match was evenly poised as the score moved on to 4-4. However, after Nishikori held serve to make the score 5-4, he sensed blood. In the 10th game of the match, Nishikori produced a remarkable return winner to yield two break points, and he snaffled the second to take the set.
That seemed to stun Murray, who wasn’t playing with his patented aggression in the early stages of the match. The Scot let the World No. 5 seize the initiative at the start of the second set, as an early break of the British No. 1’s serve gave Nishikori a comfortable lead.
Tennis coach Brad Gilbert commented during the game on how uncharacteristically passive Murray had been in the match up to that point:
That wouldn’t last, though, as Murray, galvanised by the London crowd, came roaring back into contention. He won three straight games to level things up at 4-4. Yet just when he looked as though he was accruing some critical momentum, Nishikori upped his level once again, taking the next two games and subsequently the match.
Murray can still qualify for the next round, but it's imperative he picks up a victory in his next match. He could technically progress with one victory from his three group games, but it's vital the two-time Grand Slam winner accrues some momentum after this disappointing loss. By comparison, Nishikori will be hoping to spring a surprise at this prestigious tournament.
Classy Federer Too Good for Raonic
The Swiss star showed his finesse and fortitude in a draining encounter with Raonic, eventually triumphing 6-1, 7-6 (0) against the big-serving Canadian. Federer blitzed the ATP Tour Finals debutant in the first set with a display of serene artistry, before digging in and emerging as the victor after an abrasive second set.
The ATP World Tour Twitter account highlighted the result:
Federer, who still has an outside chance of finishing the year as World No. 1 with a flawless display at the finals, started the match in dazzling form. The No. 2 seed outmanoeuvred Raonic throughout the course of the first set, nullifying the Canadian's enormous serve in the process and consequentially raced into a 6-1 lead.
Sky Sports Tennis provided an indication of just how difficult it has been for players to get the better of Raonic in such emphatic fashion:
While Fed was looking at his imperious best, ByTheMin Tennis pondered the prospect that the Canadian may have been suffering from a bout of opening-night nerves:
But Federer, who lost to Raonic in the quarter-finals of the Paris Master recently, will have been expecting a strong response from a young player who has enjoyed an excellent 2014. And throughout the early stages of the second set there was a lot more to like about the Canadian's play.
His serve, typically the strongest facet of the 23-year-old's game, was a lot sharper. And although his first-serve percentage was down in the second set, the ones he managed to get in were having a much more positive impact. Ahead of the match, BBC Tennis illustrated just how important the Canadian's serve is to his game:
Federer clung on amidst the scorching serves and booming ground strokes, keeping the match on serve up until the 11th game. In the 12th, Raonic, leading 6-5 in the set, manufactured a set point, which Federer saved, before the Swiss star insouciantly recomposed himself and served out the game to take the second set into a tiebreak.
But Federer, as he so often does, stepped it up a level in the tiebreak. He secured a mini-break on the first point before a coalescence of rudimentary Raonic errors and genial inspiration from the World No. 2 saw him win the tiebreak 7-0 and subsequently the match.
Federer has enjoyed a prosperous end to the campaign and is many people's tip to be the man that runs Novak Djokovic closest at these finals. This hard-earned win over an opponent that's troubled him recently suggests that the 17-time Grand Slam winner is primed for a tilt at the title in London.
All statistics courtesy of ATPWorldTour.com
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