Top seed Tommy Paul, has ended Rinky Hijikata’s brilliant run at The Drive.
The American’s 6-3 6-4 win seals Paul’s 15th tour-level semifinal and his first since winning his fourth ATP title in Stockholm last October.
Paul was rock solid throughout, while Hijikata – a lucky loser at the ATP 250 tournament – will rue his missed opportunities after failing to convert any of his four break point chances.
Hijikata will take considerable confidence from his quarterfinal run, but Paul’s classy performance was a step above, with the American lifting his level from his previous match.
“Yesterday wasn’t the prettiest match but I came out today and I picked up my level a tonne, I mean I knew had to,” said Paul.
“I watched Rinky play Goffin the other day and that was a very entertaining match. He played awesome there so I knew I had to bring it.”
If Paul reaches the final, the 27-year-old will leapfrog Grigor Dimitrov and Stefanos Tsitsipas to become world No. 10, becoming the 38th American to break into the Top 10 since the inception of ATP rankings in 1973.
He will next play Canadian, Felix Auger-Aliassime, who felled another American, Marcos Giron, 7-6(3), 6-3.
The fifth-seeded Auger-Aliassime is excited for the challenge against a player approaching the top 10.
“It’s nice to compete with these guys again who are top 10 or close. I’m confident with my game, I’m playing good tennis and hopefully it’ll be a good one tomorrow,” he said.
https://twitter.com/AdelaideTennis/status/1877229354964414647
Jessica Pegula was the lone American seed to progress to the semifinals, with the No.1 seed leading 6-4 2-0 when countrywoman Ashlyn Krueger retired from their quarterfinal.
Emma Navarro, the No.2 seed, bowed out to world No.26 Liudmila Samsonova, 6-4, 6-4.
In the battle of the Americans, top seed Pegula played a tidy match against compatriot Krueger, serving well and capitalising on both of her break point chances.
A gruelling fourth round match against Paula Badosa took its toll on Krueger, the American calling it quits in the third game of the second set.
“I knew she had a tough singles match yesterday, a great win. She’s been playing some amazing tennis so I was happy just to stay out here being in a match situation,” Pegula said of Krueger.
Pegula, one of 17 top-100 ranked American women and one of three inside the world’s top 10, reflected on the strength of U.S. tennis and her journey as a player.
“I remember when I wasn’t ranked as high, seeing all the American girls that I played and grew up with always motivated me so I think we’ve done a really great job,” she said.
“The men as well, in motivating each other with this great depth we have in American tennis.”
Pegula next plays the winner of the quarterfinal between Kazakh, Yulia Putintseva and Diana Shnaider.
Back-to-back #AdelaideTennis semifinals for @JPegula ‼️
The Number 1 seed punches her way back in to the final 4️⃣ pic.twitter.com/9GxHlY6EQ4
— Adelaide International (@AdelaideTennis) January 9, 2025
Compatriot Navarro, meanwhile, was overpowered by a big-hitting Samsonova.
With a solid career record of 16-5 in quarterfinal matches, Samsonova came out firing, hitting 16 winners to two from Navarro, who struggled to keep up with the 26-year-old’s intensity and raw power.
This is Samsonova’s seventh career win over top 10 opponents, her first since 2023 after losing her last five such encounters, which she reflected on after the match.
“One of the best (wins) for sure, yes. I already had some match wins against the top 10 but not so many so this is very important for me.”