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A20 SPORTS
Thursday 6 sepTember 2018
Nishikori outlasts Cilic, joins Osaka in U.S. Open semifinals

By BRIAN MAHONEY turning from a wrist injury
AP Sports Writer that forced him to miss the
NEW YORK (AP) — Kei Nishi- U.S. Open last year and will
kori rallied to outlast Marin play either No. 6 seed No-
Cilic on Wednesday at the vak Djokovic or unseeded
U.S. Open, giving Japan a John Millman on Friday.
men's and women's semi- "I wish I don't go to five sets
finalist at the same Grand every time," Nishikori said.
Slam for the first time, ac- Osaka had it much easier,
cording to the ATP Tour. continuing what's been
Nishikori won the rematch a largely dominant run
of the 2014 final with a 2-6, through the draw by win-
6-4, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4 victory ning in just 57 minutes, the
in a match that lasted 4 third time in her five match-
hours, 8 minutes. es she didn't even have to
In the match before Nishi- play an hour.
kori's, Naomi Osaka moved The No. 20 seed moved
into her first Grand Slam from Japan to New York
semifinal by routing Lesia at age 3, and her deepest
Tsurenko 6-1, 6-1. major run is coming at the
Only once in the profes- same tournament she first
sional era that began in visited as a child.
1968 had Japan had a "Well, it definitely means
men's and women's player a lot for me, and I always
in the quarterfinals at the thought if I were to win a
same tournament. That Grand Slam, the first one I'd Naomi Osaka, of Japan, returns a shot to Lesia Tsurenko, of Ukraine, during the quarterfinals of the
was at Wimbledon in 1995, want to win is the US Open, U.S. Open tennis tournament, Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2018, in New York.
and both Shuzo Matsuoka because I have grown up Associated Press
and Kimiko Date lost in that here and, like, then my
round. grandparents can come Osaka had consecutive often failing to make Osaka Tsurenko said. "I didn't want
The seventh-seeded Cilic and watch," she said. "I 50-minute matches earlier do anything special to win to show this kind of game in
won the 2014 final in straight think it would be really in the tournament, includ- a point and finishing with 31 front of this big crowd, but
sets for his only career ma- cool." ing a 6-0, 6-0 thrashing of unforced errors. unfortunately I'm just not
jor title. Nishikori said this She raced to a 3-0 lead in Aliaksandra Sasnovich in "I hate matches like this," able to play now."q
week that he was nervous the first set and then 4-0 the third round.
once that match began, in the second against the She was finally tested in the
but this one was nothing shaky Tsurenko, who fin- round of 16, edging past Former world half
like that day. ished with more unforced No. 26 Aryna Sabalenka
than 2 hours, but she was marathon champion
Instead, it resembled their errors than points in her first 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 in a little more
2010 second-round match major quarterfinal.
in Flushing Meadows, when Osaka will face either 14th- back in complete control
Nishikori rallied to win in five seeded Madison Keys or against Tsurenko, winning Paul Koech dies at 49
sets in 4:59, the fifth-longest No. 30 Carla Suarez Navar- 20 of 22 points (91 percent)
men's singles match by ro in the first major semifinal on her first serve. NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — fastest 10,000 in history, fin-
time in U.S. Open history. appearance for a Japa- Tsurenko labored in the Paul Koech, a former world ishing second behind Ter-
Each man blew chances to nese woman since Date heat during her fourth- half marathon champion gat as his friend broke the
gain control and perhaps reached the final four at round victory over Marketa and long-time teammate world record in the event.
have a much quicker end- Wimbledon in 1996. Vondrousova, having her of Kenyan great Paul Ter- The IAAF said it was "deep-
ing to a match that had The 20-year-old said she temperature and blood gat, has died. ly saddened" to hear of
wild swings of momentum. was nervous, claiming to checked during a medical He was 49. Koech's death.
Cilic appeared to be coast- be "freaking out inside" — timeout in the first set and The Kenyan track and field Koech was a major in the
ing after taking the first set though it certainly never nearly quitting when she federation said Wednes- Kenyan armed forces and
and opening a 4-2 lead in showed. trailed early in the second. day that Koech died Mon- a member of the Athletics
the second. The Croatian "Just like my entire body She recovered to win in day after a short illness. The Kenya executive commit-
then had the lead in the was shaking, so I'm really three sets, with her oppo- federation did not release tee at the time of his death.
third-set tiebreaker until glad I was able to play well nent accusing her of act- any more details. Tergat, now head of the
double-faulting on consec- today," she said. ing after the match. "Paul was a great track, Kenyan Olympic commit-
utive serves. She won 59 points to just It was another hot after- cross-country and road- tee, said Koech was highly
After Cilic evened the 28 for the unseeded Ukrai- noon Wednesday, with racing athlete," Athletics patriotic and hard working.
match by taking the fourth nian, who knocked off No. temperatures in the high- Kenya said. "It's beyond belief he is no
following a 10-minute 2 seed Caroline Wozniacki 80s (30s Celsius) but feel- Koech won the world half longer with us," Tergat said.
break for heat, Nishikori was in the second round. ing some 10 degrees hotter marathon championship in "This was a very good friend
on the verge with running But Tsurenko said she was with the humidity. Zurich in 1998. At the 1996 of mine and not only did
away with the fifth, holding sick Wednesday, waking Tsurenko didn't appear Atlanta Olympics, he fin- we represent the country
a break point for a 5-1 lead. up with a sore throat and bothered by the condi- ished sixth in the 10,000 me- together but he believed
Instead, Cilic held and then not breathing well. tions, but whether it was her ters and the following year entirely in national duty.
broke Nishikori on his way to "Unfortunately during this health or just first-time jitters, was fourth at the world "He was someone who
evening the set at 4-all, but tournament I had many is- she was off from the minute championships. Tergat was a refined officer. He
then Nishikori took the final sues with my health, and she stepped onto Arthur won silver in both of those was firm, never believed in
two games. today was not my day ob- Ashe Stadium. races. any short cuts ... this is very
The No. 21 seed continued viously. I was not feeling She pushed some balls a In 1997, Koech ran the third-
his strong season after re- well," she said. few feet past the baseline, painful."q