Mochizuki makes Grand Slam history for Japan at Wimbledon

LONDON: Shintaro Mochizuki made history on Sunday becoming the first Japanese player to win a boy’s Grand Slam title, beating Carlos Gimeno Valero of Spain 6-3, 6-2 in the Wimbledon final.

The 16-year-old, who was playing just his third grass court tournament, follows 1969 girls singles title winner Kazuko Sawamatsu in triumphing at the grass court Grand Slam. Mochizuki said he had learned a lot from his compatriot, 2014 US Open finalist Kei Nishikori.

“He’s really nice,” said Mochizuki. “He gives me a lot of advice. “Like sometimes I practice with him. I learn from him a lot. Yeah, he’s smart.”

Nishikori, nine times a Grand Slam quarter-finalist, took to Twitter almost immediately to fete his compatriot. “Huge congrats to @ShintaroMOCHIZU! Such an amazing tournament,” tweeted the Japanese star, adding a thumbs up icon, a flexed bicep icon and several Japanese flags.

However, it is not 29-year-old Nishikori who is his idol. “Roger Federer, I love watching him on TV, yeah,” he said. Mochizuki said he had been mindful of his implosion at the French Open when he led 5-2 in his semi-final only to lose.

He said the pivotal moment had been when he was a set up but break points down early in the second set and managed to hold. “In the first set, I got broken twice,” he said. “I wanted to hold my service game a lot. It was good. I played really tough.”