Kei Nishikori blamed himself on Sunday for his failure to lead Japan to a first-round victory over Croatia in the Davis Cup World Group.
"I was the one who had to put up two wins for my country," Nishikori said in a courtside interview after his teammate Go Soeda lost in a decisive fifth match at Bourbon Beans Dome in Hyogo Prefecture.
Nishikori, the highest-ranked player in the Japan-Croatia series at No. 20 in the world, was completely outclassed by 43rd-ranked big server Ivo Karlovic.
(Japan Times)
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