Nishikori first Japanese man in Paris last 16 in 75 years

Kei Nishikori of Japan hits a return to Benoit Paire of France during their men's singles match at the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris June 1, 2013. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

PARIS (Reuters) - Kei Nishikori became the first Japanese man to reach the last 16 of the French Open in 75 years when he beat French 24th seed Benoit Paire 6-3 6-7(3) 6-4 6-1 in the third round on Saturday.

Nishikori, the 13th seed, kept his composure despite his opponent's histrionics and bad temper, weathering the fickle Court Suzanne Lenglen crowd to prevail on his first match point.