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Match Details
Fixture: (PR) Reilly Opelka vs Rinky Hijikata
Date: May 25, 2025
Tournament: French Open
Round: First Round (Round of 128)
Venue: Stade Roland Garros, Paris, France
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Clay
Prize Money: €56,352,000
Live Telecast: USA - TNT Sports, TruTV, HBO Max | UK - Eurosport | Canada - TSN, RDS
Reilly Opelka vs Rinky Hijikata preview
Reilly Opelka will square off against Rinky Hijikata in the first round of the French Open 2025.
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Opelka suffered a first-round exit at the hands of Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Barcelona Open, his first tournament on clay this year. He beat Hijikata in the first round of the Madrid Open before losing to Karen Khachanov in the next round. He dropped down to the Challenger circuit after that and made the last eight in Aix-en-Provence, though he retired from his match.
Opelka's time at the Italian Open was quite brief as he was knocked out by compatriot Learner Tien in the first round. The Geneva Open marked his final pit stop before the French Open and the American failed to make it past the qualifying rounds.
Hijikata kicked off his clay swing in Houston with a first-round exit. He crashed out in the qualifying rounds of the BMW Open in Munich after that. He initially lost in the Madrid Open qualifiers but got a spot in the main draw as a lucky loser. He didn't capitalize on his second shot and lost to Opelka in the first round.
Hijikata then went down to Corentin Moutet in the first round of the Italian Open. He next participated in the Bordeaux Challenger. He beat Nishesh Basavareddy, Sebastian Baez and Benjamin Hassan before being shown the door by Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
Reilly Opelka vs Rinky Hijikata head-to-head
Opelka leads Hijikata 1-0 in the head-to-head. He won their previous encounter at last month's Madrid Open in straight sets.
Reilly Opelka vs Rinky Hijikata odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Reilly Opelka vs Rinky Hijikata prediction
Both players have struggled to get going during this clay season. Opelka has a 1-3 record on the red dirt this year at the ATP level. His only win coincidentally came against Hijikata as well. As for the Aussie, he has a 0-3 record on clay in ATP events.
However, the duo did pick up a few wins at the Challenger level. This will be Opelka's first appearance at the French Open since 2022. He has a 2-4 record here. He reached the third round in 2021 and failed to cross the first hurdle on other occasions.
Hijikata lost in the first round of the French Open on his main draw debut last year. Even though he lost to Opelka a few weeks ago, the conditions in Madrid differ vastly from those in Paris. The relatively slower conditions at the French Open offer him the opportunity to counter the American's serve more effectively.
However, Hijikata's current form makes him the underdog in this match-up. Opelka already beat him once this year and could make it two in a row despite his own struggles at the moment.
Pick: Reilly Opelka to win in four sets.
