Australian Open 2012 live stream

When Kei Nishikori and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga lined up against one another in the fourth round of Australian Open 2012 on Monday, there was just something about it that indicated it would go to five sets.

Of course, it’s very easy to say these things in retrospect. The Japanese player’s upset 2-6, 6-2, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 victory over the No.6 seed Tsonga, played before an enthralled crowd on Hisense Arena, was a dramatic affair where the conclusion was in doubt until the final point. Yet somehow, it was no shock that it extended the distance.

“(My previous) best result is 2008 US Open round of 16. That was couple years ago. And I played well end of last year, and now it's like this. So, yeah, I feel I'm stepping up,” Nishikori said after qualifying for his first Grand Slam quarterfinal.

Despite sharing little physical resemblance – the slight Nishikori is 10 centimetres shorter and 23 kilograms lighter than the physically-imposing Frenchman, who stands at 188 centimetres and 91 kilograms – the similarities in their game are striking. Constructing points around their dominant forehands, they are flashy yet streaky, explosive yet erratic.

It perhaps explains the up-and-down nature of their scoreline. And as we saw in the five-set Bernard Tomic-Alexandr Dolgopolov match a few nights earlier, when you pit two similarly-styled players against one another, it’s a battle to separate them.

Plus, both men are no stranger to an Australian Open epic. Nishikori was forced to battle for five sets against local Matt Ebden in the second round, recovering from two-sets-to-love down. And even though progression through the draw had been somewhat simpler for Tsonga this year, in his past two trips to Melbourne Park, he has played four five-setters.

And so the stage was set. Yet in the early running, the 2008 Australian Open finalist threatened to overwhelm the less-experienced 24th seed.

Tsonga recovered from a 0-40 deficit in the opening game, powering his way out of trouble thanks to some big forehands and breaking immediately in the next game to establish a 2-0 lead. Another service break a few games later helped him secure a one-set lead.

The game completely swung on its axis in the second game of the second set, after a battle that saw the Japanese eventually break for a 2-0 lead on his third opportunity. He rode his momentum throughout this set and levelled the match in style thanks to a backhand winner.

Although requiring treatment for some pesky blisters on his feet – something that also affected him during the Ebden match – Nishikori raced through the third set. Tsonga had simply dissolved, combining for 29 errors throughout sets two and three compared to Nishikori’s tally of just nine. It seemed the Japanese player, watched on by mixed doubles partner Kimiko Date-Krumm, was on track for a relatively routine win.

But it would not be a true Australian Open match without a fightback form the Frenchman. Tsonga moved ahead 4-1, and faced with a 0-40 deficit two games later, saved all three break points – the last with an athletic volley off his shoelaces – to eventually hold on his way to levelling the match.

On to a fifth, and unfortunately for Tsonga, the errors that had so plagued and frustrated him earlier in the match crept back into his game. Erring on his forehand, he eventually surrendered a break in the fourth game to fall behind 1-3, and never recovered.

Nishikori clinched the match after an exciting point saw him scamper for a drop volley and flick a backhand winner. Yet he revealed he had been nervous and fatigued trying to close it out.

“Of course, I want to finish three set. I started slow I think today. I was missing a lot, a lot of unforced errors (in the) first set, then start playing well in second set,” he surmised.

“But that was (my) second win five set these two weeks. Yeah, I'm very confident.”

The result is a major one for tennis in his homeland. Not since 1932 has a Japanese match reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open.

Nishikori has been one of the more popular players at this year’s tournament, his profile on this website being among the most accessed of all players. No doubt this result will see him attract even more hits as he prepares for a quarterfinal showdown with Andy Murray, who “kind of destroyed” him in their last match.

But he insists he feels no pressure despite the enormous interest in his run being generated back home, including receiving texts of encouragement from previous top 50 compatriot Shuzo Matsuoka.

“I never feel the pressure. You know, it's (a great) honour to make a lot of history, to be No.1 player in Japan. But that never gives me the pressure,” he said.

“Hopefully people, especially kids, start playing tennis (in Japan). But first of all I have to play well and I have to give them good news, to Japan. You know, if that helps Japan, I'm really happy.”