Stand-in Nishikori stuns Berdych in Kooyong final

Kei Nishikori has claimed the AAMI Kooyong Classic title after a comfortable win over Tomas Berdych on Saturday. The Japanese star edged to a 6-4 7-5 win in the final in Melbourne, only taking his place due to Richard Gasquet withdrawing from the decider due to fatigue. It will give the Australian Open's 16th seed plenty of confidence heading into the first grand slam of the year, where he is due to play local Marinko Matosevic in the opening round. Berdych, the Czech seventh seed, faces Kazakh Aleksandr Nedovyesov on the opening day. In a battle between two Australians earlier in the day, Luke Saville overcame Benjamin Mitchell 6-3 6-4.