Kei Nishikori v Milos Raonic
Nishikori and Raonic face each other for the fifth time in 2014. Getty Images/Julian Finney

Kei Nishikori faces Milos Raonic in the afternoon session on day five at the ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena in London.

Where to Watch

Kei Nishikori v Milos Raonic is live on BBC Two, Sky Sports HD3 and BBC Radio Five Live Sports Extra from 2pm.

Preview

Qualification for the semi-final from Group B comes down to last two nail-biting matches on day five in London.

Despite both losing in straight sets, both Nishikori and Raonic remain in contention for a place in the last four but their fate is far from in their own hands.

Having lost his opening two round robin matches Raonic has to win in two sets to stand any chance to reaching the knock-out phase on his ATP Finals debut.

Nishikori meanwhile has the luxury of being able to lose, even in straight sets and still being able to go through but he will have to rely on the lottery of his tournament games record and the result of the Federer-Murray evening match going his way.

The Japan player has won four of the five career meetings between the pair, four of which have come in 2014 but Raonic did prevail in their only duel in London, on the way to the Canadian reaching the Wimbledon semi-final.

What they said:

Kei Nishikori: "Japanese media always is very nice to me, so it's been very nice. You know, after US Open, it's been little bit change, more attention for me everywhere. But it's not like they give me a pressure. I try to enjoy every moment I have. Even this week, try to enjoy every match. Try to play good tennis all the time."

Milos Raonic: "There's a slim possibility [of qualifying]. I have to win the next match in straight sets. I'm not going to start counting games now. [I] haven't served well. I've been too passive on the court. I've been trying to beat the two guys playing their tennis, and that's not going to work for me."

Betting odds (source: William Hill):

Kei Nishikori 4.6 v Milos Raonic 6/5

Head-to-head record: Nishikori 4-1 Raonic. Last match Toyko (Hard) Nishikori bt Raonic 7-5(5) 4-6 6-4

Previous meetings at the ATP World Tour Finals: N/A

Related