Tennis: Hijikata, a qualifier, crushes 21st-ranked Darderi

Qualifier, 83rd, first through

Rinky Hijikata was the first player to reach the second round in Paris on Monday, and he did it without a wobble. The Australian, ranked 83rd and a qualifier, beat Italy’s Luciano Darderi 6-2, 6-2 on court 1 in the opening round of the Rolex Paris Masters.

Darderi arrived ranked 21st, which makes the margin more striking. Hijikata led 3-2 in the first set when play started and then pulled away, with nothing in the match to suggest a close finish.

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A busy court 1 day

Hijikata’s result opened a morning in which favorites mostly held and several unseeded players made their mark. Luca Van Assche beat Mariano Navone 6-3, 7-5 later on the same court, and Cameron Norrie beat Matteo Arnaldi 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

The Australian will have to wait to learn his next opponent, but he has already done the hard part: turning a qualifying run into a main-draw win against a seeded-level name.

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