The Federer curse strikes as Nishikori pulls out of Miami with injury; Djokovic through to the final

Roger Federer and Kei Nishikori after their quarterfinal match in Miami which Nishikori won

The last eight men to have beaten Roger Federer in a Grand Slam tournament have gone on to lose their next match. It appears the curse is spreading to the Masters Series events now! Kei Nishikori, seemingly in the form of his life after scalping three straight top 20 victims including the Swiss in the quarters, has been laid low by a groin injury. The organisers of the Sony Open Tennis event confirmed the news with a brief post on their website.

The 24-year-old Japanese star felt great discomfort even as he got out this morning in Miami to practice for his semifinal match against Novak Djokovic scheduled for later in the day. Nishikori informed his fans about his withdrawal over Twitter. “Very disappointed and I am obviously very sorry for any fans,” said a tweet on his page referring to those who may have planned to be in the stadium.

Nishikori, eager to reach out to his dismayed fans, was even more elaborate on his Facebook page. “Very sorry to say that I have to pull out today. Very disappointed and I am obviously very sorry for any fans that wanted to come out for this match,” he said. “This tournament is very special to me and look forward to coming back in the years to come. I will work with my medical team to be back healthy as soon as possible.”

Nishikori was having a great run this week, having defeated Grigor Dimitrov and then saving four match points in a pulsating three set encounter with David Ferrer. The 20th seed was not done though, as he kept the momentum going by scoring a sensational come-from-behind victory over Federer.

In the quarters on Wednesday, Nishikori lost the first set and twice trailed by a break in the second, before finding the nerve to prevail over the Swiss. However, the exertions of having played back-to-back three-set encounters over the incredibly fit Ferrer and Federer seem to have taken a toll on the rising Japanese star, who is on the verge of breaking into the top 20.

Meanwhile, Djokovic will enjoy another day off in Key Biscayne. Florian Mayer, who was scheduled to play the third round with the Serb, had also pulled out earlier this week. The walkover gives Djokovic a great chance to pull off the Indian Wells – Miami double for the second time in his career.

Djokovic won both these titles in 2011 and will seek a fourth title in Miami when he faces the winner between Rafael Nadal and Tomas Berdych this coming Sunday.