Nishikori ousted, suffers rare 5-set loss to Paire in US Open Round 1

No. 4 Kei Nishikori entered the 2015 US Open with the best deciding set record in tennis history with 81 wins and 21 losses.

But nobody told Benoit Paire.

Nishikori, the reigning finalist at Flushing Meadows, was defeated in a fifth set for only the fourth time in his career, losing 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 to the 41st-ranked Paire on Monday at Louis Armstrong Stadium in three hours and 14 minutes.

It's a disappointing result for Nishikori who despite an injury-riddled campaign, entered the year's final major with 29 wins on hard court trailing only No. 1 Novak Djokovic. The 25-year-old withdrew from Wimbledon with a calf injury and it's unclear if the leg troubled him in New York.

A reigning US Open finalist hadn't been ousted in the first round the following year since Andre Agassi lost in the final to Pete Sampras in 1990, and was eliminated by Aaron Krickstein in Round 1 the following year.

Meanwhile, it was an incredible performance from the 26-year-old Paire who fought off double match point in a fourth set tiebreak to stay in the match, and went on to pull off the stunning upset in the fifth. The Frenchman, who launched 21 aces in the match, had lost to Nishikori in two previous meetings.

Paire took the first set with a clear strategy to play aggressively, winning nine points at the net. He took an early advantage breaking his opponent in the third game and blew 16 winners past Nishikori, who failed to capitalize on four break point opportunities of his own.

Nishikori managed to keep his opponent away from the net in the second, and a converted break to go up 4-2 would prove the difference as the fourth seed won 6-3 to level the match at a set apiece. The Japanese only needed two winners to overcome 12 unforced errors by Paire.

Nishikori only needed one break again to take the third set, overcoming seven aces from Paire, who continued to struggle with unforced errors bringing his total for the match up to 38, with his opponent committing only 16.

Nishikori may lose sleep over the fourth set. He took a commanding 6-4 lead in the tiebreak, only to see the effort go to waste as Paire grabbed the next four points, sending the match into a fifth set.

The Frenchman took an early break and held serve the rest of the way to clinch the victory despite 67 unforced errors. He advances to face 84th-ranked Marsel Ilhan in Round 2.