Marco Trungelliti produced a remarkable comeback in the Western & Southern Open qualifying final in Cincinnati on Wednesday. The Argentine dropped the opening set to Kei Nishikori 4-6, but fought his way back to clinch the match 7-5, 6-3. For the Japanese player, who has announced his retirement at the end of the 2026 season, the dream of reaching what would have been his final Cincinnati main draw was left unfulfilled.
Nishikori makes strong start, Trungelliti turns it around
Nishikori, who had entered qualifying on a wild card and was competing as a player ranked outside the top 400, came out of the blocks with purpose. He won 59 percent of points on his first serve in the opening set, keeping the Argentine at bay and taking it 6-4. Trungelliti was still too inconsistent at that stage — 67 unforced errors in total would tell the story of Nishikori's struggles across the match and explain his decline in the second set.
In the second set, Trungelliti gradually took control from the baseline. The Argentine, who entered qualifying seeded sixth, noticeably improved his consistency, converted half of the break points he created, and claimed the set 7-5 after a hard-fought battle. The third set was more straightforward: Trungelliti wrapped it up 6-3 to seal the match.
Statistics back Trungelliti's victory
The numbers painted a clear picture of how the match unfolded. Trungelliti held serve on 63 percent of his service games, compared to just 53 percent for Nishikori. The difference was particularly stark on return: Trungelliti won 47 percent of return games, while Nishikori managed only 38 percent. Discipline proved crucial — Nishikori racked up 67 unforced errors, while Trungelliti stayed far more compact with just 35. Trungelliti also saved 68 percent of the break points Nishikori earned, a solid conversion rate that kept his serve steady in the critical moments.
Historical footnote and what comes next
It was only the second meeting between the two players on the professional tour — the first had gone Nishikori's way at the 2019 US Open. This time, Trungelliti reversed the result to book his place in the main draw of one of the most prestigious hard-court events of the season, which also serves as the final major warm-up tournament before the US Open.
For Kei Nishikori — the first Japanese player to break into the upper echelons of the game and a piece of tennis history after reaching the 2014 US Open final — the qualifying adventure in Cincinnati ends without a main draw appearance. His farewell tour continues elsewhere.
