Kei Nishikori admits he can’t win a grand slam without beating Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic.

Nishikori, who became the first Asian man to make a grand slam final at the 2014 US Open, coasted into the third round of the Australian Open on Wednesday for the seventh straight year.

But a routine 6-3 6-4 6-3 win over Jeremy Chardy can’t disguise an unflattering record against the big two of the men’s game.

Though he’s beaten Djokovic and Murray once each at major level, Nishikori knows he’ll need to improve on the combined 4-19 win-loss record before he calls himself a grand slam champion.

“Those two guys are still dominating the tour, like you saw last year,” the three-time Australian Open quarter-finalist said.

“But I hope I can sneak in there – to beat Andy and Novak.

“I mean, if I wanted to win a grand slam or Masters (event), I have to beat those two guys.”

The fifth seed is on track for a quarter-final meeting with top-ranked Murray, who he’s beaten just twice in 10 meetings.

It’s even worse against 12-time grand slam champion Djokovic, who has got the better of the top Japanese man 11 of 13 times, including in last year’s Australian Open quarter final.

“It’s gonna be big challenge for me, but I’m enjoying this challenge,” Nishikori said.

The Rio Olympics bronze medallist will play world No.121 Lukas Lacko on Friday for a place in the round of 16.