Indian Wells: Hijikata stuns Bublik for first top-10 win

Rinky Hijikata continued his breakout Indian Wells campaign, rallying from a set down against Alexander Bublik to record the first top-10 victory of his career.

Twelve months after losing to Bublik at the Phoenix Challenger, following a second-round exit at Indian Wells, Hijikata flipped the script in the most significant way possible.

Despite dropping the opening set in a tiebreak, Hijikata held his serve for the entire two-hour, 35-minute encounter, prevailing 6-7(3) 7-6(3) 6-3 against the 10th seed to advance to the round of 16.

“It was a bloody tough second round of a Challenger last year, and I’m glad we could play in the second week here this year,” he said. “Obviously, he’s a quality player. He’s had a hell of a year, never easy to face so I’m just pumped to get through.

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“It could be the first time in my life I didn’t face a break point. I’ve been working really hard with Sharky [Mark Draper], my coach, on my serve... keep applying pressure and keep holding serve.”

With what was shaping to be a tight straight-sets victory for the Kazakhstani, Hijikata remained composed, committing 21 fewer unforced errors than his opponent. When tension rose for Bublik, the Australian maintained his level, ultimately breaking in the fourth game of the third set to progress.

It marks back-to-back top-25 triumphs for Hijikata after he prevailed over No.20 seed Luciano Darderi 4-6 6-2 6-4 on Sunday to set up his match against Bublik.

READ: Hijikata, De Minaur win simultaneously to reach Indian Wells third round

Hijikata rises to world No.95 in the live ATP rankings, placing him in a prime position to return to the top 100 for the first time since August 2025. He is one of two Australians through to the round of 16, joining Talia Gibson, who has had a groundbreaking week of her own.

The Australian duo have achieved a 27-year first, becoming the first male-female qualifying pair from the same country to reach the round of 16 at Indian Wells since 1999.

Hijikata will battle 2021 champion Cameron Norrie in his next match after the 27th seed defeated Australian No.1 Alex de Minaur 6-4 6-4 earlier on Tuesday (AEDT).

“I watched a bit of his match with Demon this morning, and I thought he was playing pretty well,” Hijikata said. “He’s won here before, so he loves these conditions, it’s going to be a very tough one but I’m looking forward to it.”