No. 5 seed Kei Nishikori withdraws from Wimbledon with calf injury
LONDON — Men's No. 5 seed Kei Nishikori withdrew from Wimbledon on Wednesday, citing a left calf injury. His opponent Santiago Giraldo was given a pass into the third round.
The withdrawal opens up the draw for top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic, who was slated to face Nishikori in the quarterfinals should their seeds hold.
"I thought it was going to be OK for today," Nishikori told reporters, "but it hurt just walking and running."
Nishikori retired from a match two weeks ago in Halle, Germany, with the same injury — which he said was feeling better leading into Wimbledon. He re-aggravated it in a five-set win over Simone Bolelli in the first round Monday.
"It's not a big injury, but it's a little tear," Nishikori said. "It's very disappointing. I thought I was playing well on grass. It's very unfortunate to lose this chance, but hopefully I can do well in the U.S. series."
Nishikori was a fourth round finisher at Wimbledon a year ago, but his run to the US Open final later in the summer was his major breakout event, and a part of the season where he'll look to be the fittest for.
Marin Cilic, the No. 9 seed, is the highest seed remaining in Djokovic's quarter now, the US Open champion from 2014 facing Ricardas Berankis in the second round Wednesday. Djokovic meets Jarkko Nieminen, the Finn.
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