Nishikori beats Antonius 6-4 6-4 in US Open qualifying

Kei Nishikori controlled a tidy straight-sets win over Michael Antonius, 6-4 6-4, in the US Open qualifying semifinals. The Japanese veteran built the result on a clean, reliable delivery: 71.2 percent of first serves landed, 75.7 percent of those points went his way, and he did not hit a single double fault all match. Antonius, by contrast, found only 63.3 percent of first serves and won just 36.4 percent behind his second, a leak that made the difference in two otherwise close sets. The three double faults he added never helped his cause. For Nishikori, it was another step through the qualifying draw.