Fan favourites Grigor Dimitrov and Kei Nishikori are among a list of players who advanced to the final round of US Open qualifying on Wednesday.
The Bulgarian, who in 2019 reached the semi-finals in New York, earned a hard-fought 7-6(5), 6-4 victory against Timofey Skatov. Dimitrov is aiming to make his 15th main-draw appearance at the hard-court major. The 35-year-old will next face Finland's Otto Virtanen, who rallied past Jack Pinnington Jones 2-6, 7-6(6), 6-3. At Wimbledon, Virtanen upset fourth seed Ben Shelton in the first round.
Nishikori moved on by defeating 16-year-old American Michael Antonius, 20 years his junior, 6-4, 6-4. Playing in his final Grand Slam tournament of his career, Nishikori will need to get past his countryman Rei Sakamoto to make the main draw. It will be a battle between experience and youth when the former No. 4 Nishikori meets #NextGenATP 20-year-old Sakamoto.
Sakamoto, 10th in the PIF ATP Live Next Gen Race, defeated Alexandre Muller 6-3, 6-3.
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