Japan Open: Nick Kyrgios with shocking elimination at the Japan Open

The decision was made not long before he was supposed to face the American in the last eight on Friday. Kyrgios is now eliminated from the doubles draw after entering the semi-finals with Thanasi Kokkinakis.

The Australian exhibited an improved performance in Tokyo and revealed his fondness for the tournament after his three-setter victory on Thursday. 

The world's number 20 lost the opportunity to indulge in his love for the tournament when he announced that he was withdrawing from both singles and doubles.

Taylor Fritz automatically received a walkover into his third semi-final of the season. Meanwhile, his absence from the doubles will allow Marcelo Melo and Mackenzie McDonald to advance to the final. 

Kyrgios and Kokkinakis entered as top seeds in Tokyo this week and will play at the ATP Finals in Turin together. Although the news disheartened his fans, he is optimistic about returning on time for the season's last two events. 

"It's the better option for my body," he shared during the announcement. He feels he is doing the right thing. "I have a couple of tournaments at the end of the year and wanna do well there." he continued. 

The Wimbledon 2022 finalist will compete at the Swiss Indoors Basel next. The next event on the list is the Paris Masters before his march to the ATP Finals at Turin alongside Kokkinakis.

Kyrgios is currently 18th in the bid to qualify for the year-end tournament in the singles, but his chances look slim.

Denis Shapovalov takes onto Taylor Fritz in the semi-finals

Denis Shapovalov, a finalist in Seoul Open recently, registered a 6-4, 6-3 win on Friday to enter the semi-finals for the second time at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships.

Shapovalov landed his first head-to-head win against Borna Coric in three attempts. The Canadian converted three out of four break points and conceded a game before winning the set 6-4.

Halfway through the second set, the Canadian broke again to win the match in one hour and 17 minutes. He made two unforced errors on his delivery but won 13 straight points on serve.

"I think I played great today," Shapovalov shared after the match. "In general, my level the last two weeks has been great, so I'm very happy to be back in the semis," reflected the 23-year-old player. 

Shapovalov, with a 7-2 record at the ATP 500 event, will compete in the second title match of his career against Taylor Fritz, who trails 1-4 in their ATP head-to-head record.

The Canadian wants to surpass his previous career-high record of world's number 10. "When my serve is going well, the rest of my game, I can kind of relax and play pretty freely," Shapovalov revealed. 

He underwent a training period focused on his returns, where he admits he has improved besides his service.