Japanese star Kei Nishikori withdraws from Brisbane International due to injury

THE Brisbane International has been dealt a blow with Japanese star Kei Nishikori withdrawing from the tournament due to an ongoing knee injury.

Japanese tennis player Kei Nishikori returns the ball to David Ferrer of Spain during their tennis match at the ATP Tennis Open tournament on May 17, 2017 at the Foro Italico in Rome. / AFP PHOTO / TIZIANA FABI

THE Brisbane International has lost the presence of its prospective fifth seed Kei Nishikori after the Japanese star withdrew on Friday.

Nishikori, a regular Brisbane entrant who was last year’s runner-up, ran out of time to play in Brisbane, which starts on Sunday week after a long rehabilitation from a knee injury.

Nishikori is out of the tournament.

The Japanese right-hander, ranked No. 24, was to have arrived in the next few days to prepare in Brisbane after training in Florida and Belgium over the past six weeks.

Nishikori, the 2014 US Open runner-up, had been a top-five player 12 months but been one of a number of leading men to have been hit hard by injuries this year.

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Brisbane organisers say they expect Andy Murray (hip) to arrive from London after Christmas after fresh injury questions were raised by British media earlier this week.

Murray is the prospective third seed on a list headed by Rafael Nadal.

Meanwhile, Croatian import Ajla Tomljanovic and Victorian 17-year-old Destanee Aiava have been gifted Tennis Australia’s two women’s wildcards into the main draw of the Brisbane International.

The choices leave Queensland 19-year-old Lizette Cabrera, who is ranked one place higher than Aiava, needing to play qualifying for the Queensland Tennis Centre tournament from next Friday.

Tomljanovic, who sought Australian citizenship three years ago and is still awaiting her papers, rose in the rankings from almost No.664 in February to No.118 after a dogged return from shoulder surgery.

Aiava, ranked No.154, won the Australian Open wildcard playoffs last Sunday, an involvement which may have swayed the TA selectors as Cabrera chose not to compete in that series.

Cabrera, ranked No.153, was ranked outside the top 1000 at the start of 2016.

Tomljanovic has received plenty of wildcard opportunities from TA since transferring her allegiance from Croatia and there will be some who question her receiving a WTA entry ahead of a younger Queensland-raised woman at the compartitive stages of their careers.

Cabrera will no doubt receive the not inconsiderable consolation prize of a wildcard into other summer tournaments, such as the Hobart International, starting on January 7.

Cabrera will be in line for one of TA’s remaining Australian Open wildcards, one of which she received last year.

Australian Fed Cup player Arina Rodionova, is ranked higher than Aiava, also missed out on wildcard consideration for Brisbane.