Tokyo QF previews and picks: Nishikori vs. Chardy, Simon vs. Johnson

Kei Nishikori and Milos Raonic are the only remaining seeds in Tokyo. Nishikori is going up against Jeremy Chardy in Friday’s quarterfinals, while one of the all-unseeded clashes pits Gilles Simon against Steve Johnson.

(4) Kei Nishikori vs. Jeremy Chardy

Nishikori and Chardy will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers when they collide in the quarterfinals of the Rakuten Japan Open on Friday. Chardy leads the head-to-head series 2-1 after winning two in a row. Nishikori took their only previous hard-court encounter 7-6(5), 6-2 at the 2011 Miami event before Chardy prevailed in a straight-setter at the 2012 Abierto Mexicano Telcel and in straight sets last spring in Rome. Fast forward 16 months, however, and Nishikori is now a Grand Slam runner-up (2014 U.S. Open) and the No. 7 player in the world.

Nishikori has not missed a beat since New York, although he was tested by Donald Young on Thursday. The fourth seed eased past Ivan Dodig in his Tokyo opener then got past Young 6-4, 7-6(4). Chardy advanced to the last eight by holding off Rajeev Ram 7-5, 5-7, 6-4 before ousting No. 7 seed Kevin Anderson 6-4, 6-4. The 34th-ranked Frenchman is 28-22 for the year, while Nishikori is an amazing 46-10. With Nishikori playing in front of home fans at a tournament he won in 2012, there is no reason to think the crowd favorite will slow down anytime soon.

Pick: Nishikori in 2

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Gilles Simon vs. Steve Johnson

It has already been an eventful week for Simon as he heads into quarterfinal action on Friday. The 37th-ranked Frenchman lost the opening set in each of his first two matches 6-4 before needing to win a second-set tiebreaker in each one to stay alive. He saved five match points against Roberto Bautista Agut before the Spaniard retired in the third and he overcame Gilles Muller 4-6, 7-6(1), 6-3 on Wednesday. Simon has been inconsistent at best throughout his 2014 campaign, and his record is just now being evened at 21-21.

Up next for the former world No. 6 is a first-ever meeting with Johnson. The in-form American is up to No. 46 in the world and he will break into the top 40 with one more victory in Tokyo. Johnson’s summer results included a quarterfinal performance in Washington, D.C. and a third-round showing in Cincinnati, but severe cramping in the U.S. Open first round stalled his progress. Johnson is back in gear this week with wins over Hiroki Moriya and Marcel Granollers, the latter in an extremely high-quality match. The outcome of this one will be on Johnson’s racket, but Simon’s rock-solid baseline play may eventually break down a more powerful opponent.

Pick: Simon in 3

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