It ended with a nervous Djokovic game. Serving for the match at 3-5 to stay in the decider, the Serb opened with two double faults and was unable to recover. Hijikata broke to win.
A flawless second set
Djokovic controlled the opening set 6-2 and it looked like the match would follow the pattern of their meetings in Brisbane and Miami last year. Hijikata then turned it around in the second set, where he never faced a break point and won 71% of his service points (22 of 31).
Djokovic had to work much harder on his own serve. She survived an 18-point game with six buckets early in the set, needing six game points to hold. At 3-4 she led 40-30 but lost four of the next five points and was broken on the second break point. Hijikata then served the set to love, taking the last six points to level the match.
The best season of his career
The win caps what the 25-year-old Hijikata is calling the best year of his career. Before the meeting he said: “I feel on a level, this is probably the best season I’ve had in my career so far.” In 2026, he set a personal record of 16 victories at the tour level. As a qualifier, he reached the fourth round in Indian Wells, where he beat a top 10 player for the first time, and the quarterfinals in Queens.
In Paris he passed through two rounds of qualificationDefeating Jaime Faria 6-3, 6-4 and Vit Kopriva 7-6(5), 6-2. He then defeated Luciano Darder 6-2, 6-2 64 minutes into the first round, converting six of his 11 break points.
No Tour for Djokovic
Djokovic, the record seven-time Bercy champion, arrived in Paris in an unusual position. He dropped out of the top 10 to 11th after losing to Jan-Lennard Straff in Basel, and as the tenth seed he had no bye in the first round. He needed 2 hours and 29 minutes to Valentin Vacherot won 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-1 on Tuesday, taking a medical timeout in the second set with a shoulder problem.
He came to Paris needing a deep run to reach the ATP Finals. even if he downplayed itand Tiafoe’s loss earlier in the day kept the door open. This defeat closes it. Djokovic is out of contention for Turin, where the season finale will take place from November 15 to 22.
A day of trouble
Zverev, playing his first match since becoming world No. 1 on Monday, Lost to Musetti 7-6(5), 6-2. The German had already secured the year-end No. 1 ranking.
Fourth generation Medvedev Lost to Bus of Peru 6-4, 6-4took the 33rd place. Eighth generation De Minaur Lost to Etchvery 7-6(2), 6-3.
Fair saved four points to beat seventh-ranked Tiafoe 6-3, 1-6, 7-6(9), the biggest win of his career. His victory officially! Arthur sent Fils to the ATP Finalsthe first Frenchman to qualify since Gael Monfils in 2016. So does Luca Van Assche knocked out 15th seed Learner Tien 7-6(4), 6-4.