Returning former world No. 4 Kei Nishikori came from behind to reach the quarterfinals of the Caribbean Open tennis tournament in Puerto Rico on Thursday, beating Mitchell Krueger of the United States 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the second round.
The 33-year-old, who underwent hip surgery in January last year before hurting his right ankle while rehabilitating, played his first competitive match since October 2021 on Tuesday and secured a first-round win at the ATP Challenger Tour event.
Following a slow start against Krueger, Nishikori picked up in the second set when he secured a vital break back in the eighth game en route to taking the match to the final set.
Nishikori jumped to a 4-0 lead in the decider before wrapping up the win in just under 2 hours, 20 minutes.
