Kei Nishikori is first Japanese man into US Open semis since 1918
Tenth seed triumphs over Stan Wawrinka in epic four-hour clash
Kei Nishikori became the first Japanese man for almost a century to reach the US Open semi-finals after securing an epic 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (9/7), 6-7 (5/7), 6-4 win over Stan Wawrinka.
Nishikori, the 24-year-old 10th seed, triumphed in 4 hours 15 minutes, his second marathon clash after needing 4 hours 19 minutes to get past Milos Raonic in the previous round.
Nishikori will face either world number one Novak Djokovic or Andy Murray, both former champions, on Saturday for a place in Monday’s championship match.
Ichiya Kumagae was the last Japanese man to reach the semi-finals of the US Championships in 1918.
Nishikori, whose match against Raonic ended at a record-equalling 2:26am on Tuesday, was stunned by his win over the third seeded Wawrinka, the Australian Open champion who had won the pair’s two other meetings without dropping a set.