Brisbane International tennis: Hijikata vs Kokkinakis; Rafael Nadal on retirement, Australian Open plans

Rising Aussie tennis star Rinky Hijikata will face popular compatriot Thanasi Kokkinakis in the first round of the Brisbane International.

Rafael Nadal.

Rising Aussie tennis star Rinky Hijikata is ready to dive into the unknown of an all-Australian clash on home soil and open his 2024 campaign with a major scalp.

Drawn to face popular compatriot Thanasi Kokkinakis in the first round of the Brisbane International on Tuesday, Hijikata anticipates the home crowd will favour his fellow Aussie but feels no fear ahead of the blockbuster bout.

It will be the second time in three days that two Aussie men inside the top 100 face off in Brisbane. On Sunday, Alexei Popyrin staved off a valiant Chris O’Connell to progress to the second round.

The energy inside Pat Rafter Arena was palpable and enthusiasm for each player swung on a knife’s edge.

It’s all new to Hijikata, but he is ready to take this latest challenge in his stride.

“It’s the first time I’m going to play an Aussie on a big stage in Australia like this so it’ll be something pretty new for me,” Hijikata told this masthead.

“Obviously Thanasi is coming off a great year and yeah, it would be nice to have that home support especially at the first event of the year, but I’m probably coming up against one of the most popular Aussie players at the moment.

Australian Rinky Hijikata returns a shot against American Frances Tiafoe of the United States during their fourth round match of the 2023 US Open. Picture: Sarah Stier/Getty Images.

“I’ll probably just try to block it out mostly if I can and focus on what I’m doing on the court.

“Hopefully we can play some good tennis and put on a good show.”

The pair have never faced off in a competitive fixture and have only hit together a handful of times, but Hijikata is well aware of the weapons at Kokkinakis’ disposal.

Blessed with a “world class” serve that Hijikata dubbed “one of the best on tour”, Kokkinakis boasts a win button that – when firing – is nigh-impossible for opponents to match.

“It’s not easy to find inroads there,” conceded Hijikata.

“I think you just have to look after your serve as well as you can and then on his serve, try to put as many balls in the court as you can.

“Normally someone with that quality of a serve, chances are few and far between, but hopefully at some point I can get a look-in and that’s when I have to take advantage.

“It’s definitely not easy playing someone with such a good serve but it’s a great test to start the year and I’m looking forward to it.”

Rinky Hijikata in action at Flushing Meadows in 2023. Picture: Kena Betancur / AFP.

The 22-year-old Sydneysider is the youngest and lowest ranked of the eight Aussies inside the ATP top 100.

But Hijikata is coming off a breakout 2023 campaign that saw him rocket to a career-high singles ranking of 71 – currently just six places behind Kokkinakis – which included a run to the fourth round at the US Open.

World No.12 Alex De Minaur has established himself as the top dog among the Australian contingent but from there it’s a logjam, with Alexei Popyrin (No.40) heading seven Aussies separated by just 31 spots.

A strong showing in Brisbane would help catapult Hijikata closer to a coveted top-50 ranking with the Australian Open on the horizon.

It adds an extra layer of intrigue to the Kokkinakis clash, though Hijikata said neither player needed any more motivation to perform on the big stage.

“It’s a big occasion: first match of the year, both playing at a home tournament – you don’t get many of those throughout the year, so I don’t know if either of us need any extra motivation,” he said.

“There’s plenty on the line as it is and I’m sure he’s as raring to go as I am.

BLOCKBUSTER START AWAITS NADAL IN POTENTIAL FAREWELL TOUR

If Aussie tennis fans are on the fence about making the pilgrimage to Brisbane or Melbourne this month to watch the 22-time Grand Slam champion in action, Nadal’s comments on Sunday ahead of his first round match at the Brisbane International should serve as a warning.

The 37-year-old refused to declare this his Aussie summer swan song but hinted it was unlikely he would return to play next year, given all he went through just to make the court in Brisbane this week.

Rafael Nadal is remaining coy about whether this will be his last Australian Open campaign. Picture: William West

“The problem about saying that it’s going to be my last season (is) I can’t predict what’s going on 100 per cent,” said Nadal, who has not played an ATP tour match since injuring his hip in a second-round loss at the Australian Open last January.

“That’s why I say ‘probably’ – it’s a high percentage (chance) it’s going to be my last time playing in Australia. But if I am here next year, don’t tell me ‘you said it was going to be your last season’, because I didn’t say it.”

A tennis icon for the better part of two decades, Nadal is arguably the most popular player on the ATP tour and his comeback from a near career-ending injury means millions of eyes will tune in to see him play in Brisbane.

Rafael Nadal celebrates winning the 2022 Australian Open final. Picture: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

Part of the affable ace’s worldwide appeal – beyond his numerous career titles – was his uber-competitiveness. Win or lose, Nadal would always leave his all on the court and rivals knew they were in for a serious fight regardless of the circumstance.

But the lethal left-hander revealed “I don’t have the expectations that I used to have” and conceded he did not know how competitive he could truly be until he hit the court.

“I can’t predict how I’m going to be in the next six months. I can’t predict if my body will allow me to enjoy tennis as much as I enjoyed it the past 20 years,” he said.

“I don’t know if my body will allow me to be competitive – not in a way to win the most important events, but the way that makes me happy. For myself to feel competitive on the court and feel I can compete against anyone.

“I’m happy the way I’m practising … it’s not a long period of time practising at a decent level, so for me it’s a little bit unpredictable how it’s going to be.”

Nadal acknowledges the crowd at Melbourne Park. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

The 12-month tennis hiatus forced Nadal to rewire his competitive brain. He revealed the constant day-to-day pain quickly superseded any desire to return to the court, so much so he considered retiring.

He simply wanted to be healthy again.

“(Did I consider) retirement during that period of time? Of course yes,” he said.

“In the low moments it’s 100 per cent human you would put yourself in that position.

“That’s something of course I was asking myself but at some point I decided to keep going. I had the determination to keep going.

“I missed feeling ready to compete. I didn’t miss the competition, because during this period of time I was not ready to compete,” Nadal added.

“When you feel that bad, you can’t miss competition because what I missed was being healthy, honestly. To wake up and not have pain, to have the chance to have a normal life, because in the last year for such a lot of months I was not able to have a normal life.

“Now of course I am excited to come back to the tennis court and come back to the competition.

“If I didn’t have the determination to do it and the passion, as I have said before, I would not be here.”

Incredibly, Nadal will face former world No.3 and fellow Grand Slam champion Dominic Thiem on Tuesday after the latter won through Sunday’s qualifier against Italian Giulio Zeppieri.

Only four years ago the pair met in the quarter-finals at the Australian Open – a four-setter that went to Thiem. Now they will face off in an opening round blockbuster in Brisbane.

Nadal boasts a 9-6 head-to-head record against his Austrian rival, however Thiem has won three of their past four meetings.

Originally published as Brisbane International tennis: Hijikata vs Kokkinakis; Rafael Nadal on retirement, Australian Open plans