Fernando Verdasco got a second lease on life at the Australian Open when he dug out of a two-set hole against Janko Tipsarevic. The Serb had surrendered by the fifth set, which he lost 6-0, practically giving the final games away. As if to repay the tennis gods for their generosity, the Spaniard put forth his most complete performance of the tournament against Kei Nishikori, winning 6-2, 6-4, 6-3 in exactly two hours.
Verdasco lost fewer games to Rainer Schuettler in the opening round (six), but Nishikori is currently a class above the veteran German. The Japanese star looked impressive in his first two matches, a pair of four-set victories over Fabio Fognini and Florian Mayer. Nishikori made hay with his jumping cross-court backhand and compact forehand, a deceptive shot that catches many opponents off-guard. But while Nishikori was regularly hitting these shots from an offensive position against Fognini and Mayer, he was often forced use them on the defensive against Verdasco, who unloaded a barrage of deep forehands throughout the match. The best defense is a good offense, it's been said, and Nishkori's willingness to trade winners kept the match competitive. Verdasco was simply too strong, however, striking 26 forehand winners and offering just four break points (Nishikori converted one).
It's been a good tournament for Nishikori, who's still on the comeback trail from prolonged injury. He heads home with his best ever result Down Under. Verdasco moves on to face Tomas Berdych. Like this match, expect more offense than defense.
—Ed McGrogan