Djokovic Loses to Hijikata in Paris, Misses Turin Finals
Qualifier Rinky Hijikata turned the match around against Novak Djokovic, and the Serb now plans a rest after his defeat in Paris.
Music and crowd noise drifted over from other courts in Paris, and in the second set Rinky Hijikata held the advantage over Novak Djokovic for the first time that afternoon. B92 reports that the noise barely bothered the players, but that the Australian grew steadily more assured as the set went on.
In the end Djokovic lost his second-round match at the Paris Masters 6-2, 3-6, 3-6, which ends his chase for a place at the season-ending event in Turin. The match on November 4 lasted two hours and 14 minutes according to B92, or two hours and 16 minutes according to Beta. Hijikata came through qualifying; B92 lists him as the world number 94, while Beta has him at 83rd on the ATP list. Beta puts Djokovic at number 11 in the world.
What happened after the first set?
Djokovic won the opening set. Breaks in the first and seventh games gave him the lead, and he never dropped serve. B92 adds that he missed as many as seven break points in that set, which, as the outlet puts it, hinted at problems with his return and with chances left unused.
There was no break in the second set until the eighth game, when Hijikata took Djokovic’s serve and, according to B92, won the next game without losing a point to level the match at one set apiece. It was the first set Hijikata had ever won against Djokovic. Tennis TV wrote on X that the qualifier is the lowest-ranked player to beat the Serb this season.
In the third set Hijikata broke Djokovic in the seventh game and sealed the win with another break in the ninth. It was Djokovic’s last match of 2026.
What does Djokovic say?
The seven-time Paris champion, who is 39, made no excuses after the match. He told reporters:
“I’m disappointed, of course. I felt I was dominating during the first set and a few games after that, but then he raised his level of play.”
He went on to talk about his opponent:
“I didn’t serve that well, and he, honestly, played incredibly. He hardly missed, kept the ball low and played an outstanding match. It’s a pity I didn’t take my chances in the third set, but I think he deserved to win.”
Asked how much a defeat like this hurts, he answered:
“Of course, nobody likes to lose, but this is just one more match. I should have won. I played well in the first set, and then I completely lost control of the match.”
He also admitted he was not at his peak physically: “I’m not exactly the freshest, but that’s no excuse for the loss.” He added his plans: “Now the plan is just to rest, and I’m looking forward to it.”
The responsibility, he said, is his. “It’s my fault that I lost control, but I congratulate him,” Djokovic said, then explained why the conditions suited Hijikata:
“This is the fastest surface we’ve played on this year on the Tour. For players like him, who hit quite flat and play close to the lines, those conditions suit them very well.”
How did Djokovic get to this match?
The tournament began with a comeback against Valentin Vacherot of Monaco, 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 6-1, after more than two and a half hours, in which he had to recover from a set and a break down. The draw then opened up for him: Alexander Zverev and Alex de Minaur went out early, so by B92’s account even a semifinal in Paris would have been enough for Turin. Hijikata had already come through two rounds of qualifying and beat Luciano Darderi in 64 minutes. Before their third meeting, Djokovic had described him as “sly at the net”.
A 6-2 first set without losing serve and seven unused break points both belong to the same match. In his own review, Djokovic boiled it down to a single sentence about losing control.
In the round of 16, Hijikata plays Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who beat de Minaur in straight sets in the second round. Djokovic heads off to rest.
