Nishikori has confirmed he will be retiring at the end of the 2026 season. Back in 2014, the ATP veteran became the first player from Japan to reach a Grand Slam final. He did so at the US Open, though he failed to go past Marin Cilic.

But four years later in the same tournament, Osaka scripted history by becoming the first player from her country to win a Major. She defeated fellow former World No. 1, Serena Williams. Osaka went on to take home the 2019 and 2021 Australian Open, as well as the 2020 US Open.

Both Nishikori and Osaka are in Washington for the Citi Open. Nishikori's campaign ended with a straight-set defeat at the hands of Rafael Jodar in the second round.

But Osaka, after receiving the walkover from home favorite Ashlyn Krueger, has scheduled her next match against Elisabetta Cocciaretto. At a press conference at the tournament, Osaka paid a heartfelt tribute to the 36-year-old.

I respect Kei too much to say that he's my friend. I've looked up to him for so long, so for me he's almost more like an older senpai or brother… He's kind of, I don't want to say, carried us on his back for so long, but he has represented Japan at the highest level for an amazingly long period of time.

Nishikori reached his career-best ranking of No.4 in March 2015, and has won 12 singles titles, the last of which he clinched at the 2019 Brisbane International by defeating Daniil Medvedev. Then last year, he lost to Alexandre Muller in the Hong Kong Open final, which was also the last time he reached a tour-level final.

What I studied from him is the backhand and the return. Obviously I need to study more. But yeah, those are the things that I admired the most. Then obviously, that he never got angry or things like that.

In Washington, Nishikori competed in a tour-level tournament for the first time this season. All the matches that he played before arriving in the American capital were in the Challenger events. Nishikori won the 2015 Citi Open.

Naomi Osaka progressed to her first quarterfinal in Washington. As mentioned before, Ashlyn Krueger handed her the walkover as she suffered a right ankle injury while trailing 6-3, 3-1.

The 28-year-old will be playing a quarterfinal for the third consecutive time. Before arriving in Washington, Osaka reached the final of the Bad Homburg Open and the last eight of Wimbledon.

It's kind of funny because I thought leaving grass courts, I'd be so happy to touch a hard court again, and then my first practice on a hard court, I was a little bit, like, I might like grass a lot better. It did take some adjusting. It did take some getting used to. But I think in that first practice back on a hard court, I finally realized why people said my game could suit a grass court, because everything is a lot faster.

Osaka reached her first career final on grass in Bad Homburg. She also made the quarterfinal of the grass-court Major for the first time and lost that match to eventual runner-up Karolina Muchova.

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