Kei Nishikori beat Nick Kyrgios over one set, but it wasn’t enough to stop the Japan Warriors falling to defeat against the Singapore Slammers at the International Premier Tennis League on Sunday.
The Warriors were already trailing when Nishikori took to the court for the final set in his home country, and despite a 9-4 overtime win against Kyrgios, he could not reduce the deficit enough to prevent the Slammers claiming an overall 27-23 result.
Kiki Bertens and Carlos Moya had already won one-sided sets for the Slammers, before Kyrgios teamed up with Marcelo Melo to trump Nishikori and Fernando Verdasco in the men's doubles.
And while Nishikori gained a measure of revenge over Kyrgios, the away side had the last laugh.
Earlier, the Indian Aces dropped their first points of the tournament after losing 30-20 to a UAE Royals side led by Tomas Berdych.
In the fourth set, Berdych secured a 6-3 win over Feliciano Lopez that, coupled with a 6-6 tie in the men's doubles that followed, eased the Royals over the finishing line.
The IPTL returns on Tuesday, live on Sky Sports from midday.