Doubles champ eager to make singles splash
HE’S back to the tour grind at the Burnie International, but Australian Open doubles champion Rinky Hijikata hopes the confidence gained from his big pay day will help him make the singles leap he craves.
The 21-year-old’s giantkilling run to lift the trophy, in tandem with fellow young Aussie Jason Kubler, was one of the stories of the first major of the year. It earned him $US242,381 ($A344,500) in prizemoney, more than a third of his total career prizemoney of $683,712 ($A971,800).
And while he’s still getting used to being recognised off the court a little more, the Burnie second seed and world no.149 feels he’s better prepared than ever to make some noise in singles.
He began his campaign in Burnie with a comfortable 6-3 6-2 win over Japan’s Yusuke Takahashi on Tuesday, and will play wildcard Blake Ellis in the next round.
“It (doubles win) gives me a lot of confidence. I feel like my game has been tracking in the right direction for a while now and I feel ready to make that jump,” he said.
“More than anything, feeling comfortable out on the big stage and backing myself and being able to perform in that scenario (was pleasing). I thought we handled the occasion unbelievably well and didn’t flinch for the entire two weeks. Not once did I think we shied away from the occasion, which I think is something I can take into my singles and take a lot of confidence away from that.”
The pay cheque is also set to make life on tour a little easier for the Sydney product.
“It just means I can invest in my career a bit better,” he said.
“Tennis isn’t a cheap sport and I feel like to get to the top you need to invest back in yourself, and bet on yourself to get better results.
“It gives me more leverage to take a more comfortable flight maybe, to get to a tournament better rested for a couple of hundred bucks extra, or making sure someone’s on the road with me when my coach can’t travel.
“Little things like that are really important and I don’t have as much financial stress any more, which is nice.
“If I’m still hungry after dinner I’ll get another meal, things like that I don’t have to worry about now. Whereas 18 months ago I was a bit more strict with my money.”
Hijikata said he’s adjusting to the slower conditions at Burnie, and hasn’t yet had time to fully digest his Australian Open victory.
After a couple of big guns went down on Monday, Tuesday proved a strong day for the seeds at Burnie, a $75,000 ATP Tour Challenger event.
Top seed James Duckworth advanced with a 6-1 6-4 win over Japan’s Makoto Ochi and Japanese seventh seed downed countryman Daisuke Sumizawa 6-3 6-3.
The women’s draw began on Tuesday, with fifth seed Olivia Gadecki accounting for Misaki Matsuda 6-3 6-3, while second seed Kimberly Birrell crushed Milan Krish 6-1 6-0.
Top seed Jamie Fourlis was due to play Tuesday evening.