Yoshihito Nishioka dropped to the floor after winning a remarkable rally that sealed his first-set triumph against Zachary Svajda at the Atlanta Open. The Japanese star came out on top after a gruelling first set in the States, with the final rally stunning Tennis TV’s commentary team.

Nishioka and American opponent Svajda shared an incredible rally in which several excellent shots were hit. Svajda attempted to seal the point with a drop-shot, only for Nishioka to race to the ball.

The 28-year-old managed to scoop it back over the net, with the ball bouncing just inside the singles sideline.

“Is it on the line?” quizzed the Tennis TV commentator Philip Studd, before he excitedly confirmed: “It is! Goodness me, what a lung-buster!”

Nishioka won the set but was too shattered to celebrate. He immediately dropped to the floor and took several deep breaths.

He sealed the set following a 29-shot rally. The set had entered a tiebreak after the duo were level at six games apiece. Nishioka ultimately won the tiebreak 7-4.

The left-hander, whose best Grand Slam performance were his fourth-round runs at last year’s French and Australian Opens, was afforded a far more comfortable second set. He came through 6-3 to book his place in the last-16.

Nishioka reached the second round at Wimbledon earlier this month. He was beaten by Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard who went on to lose in the fourth round.

There might be hope that world No 86 Nishioka can go far in Atlanta. Most of tennis’s top-ranked talent are either preparing for the Olympics, or have decided to take a break following Wimbledon. Reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz will make his debut at the Games.

Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray are likely to play in their final Olympics. Murray is a two-time gold medallist having won at London 2012 before retaining his crown at Rio 2016.

The tennis competition will run from July 27 to August 4. It will be hosted at Roland Garros in Paris, home of the French Open where Nadal earned the nickname the King of Clay.

In the other matches at the Atlanta Open, Denis Shapovalov defeated David Goffin while Alejandro Davidovich Fokina also advanced. The Spaniard overcame Arthur Cazaux in straight sets.

On Tuesday, Reilly Opelka will hope to continue to climb the world rankings by beating Aleksandar Kovacevic.