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Match Details
Fixture: (1) Tommy Paul vs (LL) Rinky Hijikata
Date: January 9, 2025
Tournament: Adelaide International 2025
Round: Quarterfinal
Venue: Memorial Drive Tennis Centre, Adelaide, Australia
Category: ATP 250
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize Money: $730,000
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Sky Sports | Canada - TSN+
Tommy Paul vs Rinky Hijikata preview
Top seed Tommy Paul will take on home favorite Rinky Hijikata in the quarterfinals of the Adelaide International 2025.
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After a first-round bye, Paul was up against lucky loser Manuel Guinard in the second round. The American broke his opponent's serve in the very first game of the match, and backed up the break with a hold of serve. He held on to this lead until the end to claim the first set.
Paul couldn't sustain the momentum and fell behind 3-0 in the second set. He tried his best but couldn't claw his way back into the set, which went Guinard's way. The top seed surged to an early lead in the deciding set. He faced some break points over the course of the set, including two while serving for the match but held his nerve to score a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win.
Hijikata initially fell in the final qualifying round but got a second lease of life as a lucky loser. He beat David Goffin 6-1, 6-2 to reach the second round, where he faced seventh seed Brandon Nakashima.
Hijikata raced to a 4-0 headstart in the opening set, and kept his opponent at bay to take the set. Nakashima struck back to clinch the second set and take the match to a decider. Neither player got close to a break point in the third set, which went to a tie-break. The Australian overcame a 4-2 deficit in it to register a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (5) win.
Tommy Paul vs Rinky Hijikata head-to-head
This will be the first career meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Tommy Paul vs Rinky Hijikata odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Tommy Paul vs Rinky Hijikata prediction
Paul encountered a little more resistance than he expected when he took on Guinard in his very first match of 2025. However, he got over the finish line in the end. He won 72 percent of his first serve points, and saved 10 of the 11 break points that he faced.
Hijikata lost to Novak Djokovic in the first round of last week's Brisbane International. After going down in the qualifying rounds in Adelaide, it looked like he would head to the Australian Open without a main draw win. However, he got a second chance and has made the most of it to reach the quarterfinals.
Hijikata's 0-13 record against top 20 players points to his journey coming to an end. He has lost 11 of those matches in straight sets, and his last 10 matches against them as well. Paul should be able to get through this contest with ease given his opponent's struggles against quality players.
Pick: Tommy Paul to win in straight sets.
