Australian wild cards Rinky Hijikata and Jason Kubler converted four of their ten break points in their 6-3 6-1 win over top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupsky in 66 minutes on Margaret Court Arena to reach the semifinals at the Australian Open.
Hijikata and Kubler earned an early break in the opening game to open up a 2-0 lead The home favourites did not face a break point and seal the first set 6-3 with a double break. They broke twice in the second and sixth games to close out the second set 6-1. Koolhof and Skupsky, who won seven ATP Tour titles in 2022, saved two break points in the fourth game of the second set.
Hijikata and Kubler could follow in the footsteps of their compatriots Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis, who won last year’s edition of the doubles tournament at the Australian Open.
The Australian doubles team set up a semifinal against eight seeds Marcell Granollers and Horacio Zeballos, who edged past Andreas Mies and John Peers 6-4 6-7 (2-7) 6-2 to reach the semifinals at the Australian Open for the second consecutive year.
“First of all thanks a lot to everyone for coming out today. It was bloody hot today. The energy you guys brought was unbelievable and we really thrive off it, and that’s why we play such great dubs, so thank you”, said Kubler.
Hijikata was born in Sydney to Japanese immigrant parents. His father is a tennis coach.
Hijikata said in the post match interview that it was good to start the match better than in their previous two matches.
“We started off a little bit better than our last two matches. That was good for us today I suppose. Kubler played some unbelievable balls today, but thanks to everyone for everyone, you guys really brought it too, it’s so much fun, so thank you”, said Hijikata.
Granollers and Zeballos fended off the only three break points they faced at 5-6 0-40 in the second set, but Miles and Peers won the tie-break 7-2 forcing the match to the third set. Granollers and Zeballos bounced back by earning an early break in the second game to open up a 3-0 lead. The Spanish and Argentine team closed out the match 6-2 with their third break in the eighth game.
Granollers and Zeballos reached two Grand Slam finals as a team at the 2019 US Open and 2021 Wimbledon and the French Open semifinals in 2022. They won their seventh doubles title together at Halle in 2022.
