Kei Nishikori of Japan
Kei Nishikori of Japan reacts during his semi-final tennis match against Novak Djokovic of Serbia at the ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena in London November 15, 2014. Reuters

Andre Agassi has a few nice words for player Kei Nishikori. The 44-year-old tennis legend declared that the Japanese no. 1 player has what it takes to win a Grand Slam title in his career.

The 44-year-old American made the statement after an exhibition match in Tokyo, Japan with Nishikori, who is now ranked fifth in the men’s singles rankings after a career-year. The 24-year-old Nishikori climbed the rankings by going 54-14 in 2014 and winning four ATP titles.

"There is no question in my mind he believes he can win a slam,” Agassi declared via an article from afp.com. "I've seen him play with that purpose. From a talent perspective, he's very capable of winning a grand slam. He's dynamic and incredibly fast."

Agassi also mentioned that Nishikori’s recent performance at the 2014 US Open was one of the signs that he can go all the way to a tennis majors title and that it’s a matter of getting past the “physical wear and tear” in a long tourney. By beating the likes of Novak Djokovic, Nishikori has the potential to do it again in the future, added the former world no. 1.

Agassi knows about Grand Slam titles and winning them. The American had an illustrious career as a tennis pro with four titles at the Australian Open (1995, 2000, 2001 and 2003); French Open (1999); Wimbledon (1992) and the US Open (1994 and 1999) for a total of 8 Grand Slam titles.

Nishikori is coming off an appearance at the 2014 ATP World Tour Finals becoming the first Asian to qualify for the tennis season finale. The Japanese made the semifinals in London but lost to world no. 1 Novak Djokovic of Serbia in three sets, 1-6, 6-3, 0-6 in the semifinals. However, he also has won against the the current top player in tennis beating Djokovic, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4), 6-3 in the semifinal round of the 2014 US Open.

Nishikori lost to Croatian Marin Cilic in the final, 3-6, 3-6, 3-6 but his overall performance in New York was enough to get the attention of the top players and consider him as one of the dark horse picks to win a majors title in the near future. And apparently, also the attention of a tennis legend in Andre Agassi.

For more tennis news, check IBT Sports daily.

RELATED STORIES