Each week, Benjamin Law asks public figures to discuss the subjects we’re told to keep private by getting them to roll a die. The numbers they land on are the topics they’re given. This week, he talks to Rinky Hijikata. The 21-year-old Australian made his grand slam debut at the US Open last year, stunning onlookers by winning the first set against Rafael Nadal. He ended 2022 at number 165 in the ATP men’s rankings.
Rinky Hijikata: “If there’s someone with 22 grand slams across the net from you who’s looking a bit nervous, then it makes you feel a lot better!”Credit:Paul Harris
BODIES
How intense is training on your body? To win a grand slam, you might play seven matches, each up to five or six hours. The top guys make it look easy, but it’s very tough on the body. There are changes of direction; you’ve got to be really strong and make sure you’re not getting hurt. And your cardio has to be good enough to go five or six hours as well. If you have one little weakness somewhere, it can all break down.
Has it ever broken down for you? When I was a bit younger. When I was 14 or 15, I was getting hurt quite a bit. When you train that much and you’re growing, it’s not the best thing for your body.
What’s something that you can’t do with your body that you wish you could? Oh, I’m pretty unco-ordinated for an athlete! [Laughs] I tried ice-skating and was pretty terrible at that.
What do you dislike about your body? I wish I was taller; I’m about five foot 10 [178cm]. If I was about six foot three [190cm], it’d help my serve a bit.
What do you like about your body? I like to be active. I feel like my body holds up well when I do a lot of sport.
That’s a modest answer. That was your opportunity to talk about your pecs or biceps or whatever, but you didn’t go there. Admirable. Maybe after pre-season! [Laughs]
What’s your secret party trick? Oh, I eat quite a bit. My teammates – or the people I travel with – have gone to a few all-you-can-eat sushi restaurants where we put away a fair amount of food. The waiters haven’t been too happy.
DEATH
You faced 22-time Grand Slam singles winner Rafael Nadal last August in the first round of the US Open. Were you afraid of getting murdered on the court? I was trying not to think about it! But no matter how confident you are, no matter how much belief you have in yourself, there’s always going to be that little voice in the back of your head that says, “What if you get dusted in 40 minutes? How bad would that be? There are probably millions watching right now; you don’t want to do that.” But that also helps, in a way. It makes you alert and really hungry to play well.
You ended up taking the first set off him. Did you see fear in Nadal’s eyes? It’s tough to say. Someone like that has been in that position so many times before. At no point did I think, “I’ve really got him under the pump here.” But it was his first match in a while and he did look a bit nervous to begin with, which relaxed me. If there’s someone with 22 grand slams across the net from you who’s looking a bit nervous, then it makes you feel a lot better!
What’s on your tennis bucket list? To play Wimbledon. Play the Aussie Open – I’ve grown up watching that tournament – and the Davis Cup. Win a Grand Slam. There’s a long list of things. I’m very early in my career, but slowly starting to tick some things away, which is pretty cool.
How would you ideally like to die? In old age, surrounded by people I love.
And having won a few Grand Slams? That would be ideal. Wimbledon trophy in the corner!
How would you really not like to die? Ooh, drowning or being buried alive.
When do you feel most alive? Honestly, playing tennis – big matches – really does make you feel alive, as clichéd as that sounds. You go from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows so quickly. It’s rare that you have a match where you go from start to finish with no issues. It’s about problem-solving, seeing how far you can push yourself, getting the most out of yourself and just trying to embrace the moment. That’s kind of how life works.
MONEY
It’s one thing to play a sport, it’s another thing to do it as your job. How do you turn the sport you love into a job that makes money for you? To begin with, it’s not easy. At the lower-level tennis tournaments, you really don’t make any money. If anything, you’re losing money. You’re looking at your account and losing money every week, and you know there’s a bit of a time limit. So you want to really push yourself to move up levels and tournaments quickly so that you can start making a little bit of money and getting free hospitality, hotels and food – stuff like that. Now, compared to 12 months ago, is a completely different situation for me. There’s not as much pressure on the financial side of playing now.
What are the other costs and sacrifices you’ve invested in this career? You’re travelling most of the year. As an Australian, it’s not easy to just dart back and forth from home. Last year, I left home in early February, right after the Aussie Open, and didn’t come back until October. That’s nine months of the year I was overseas and didn’t get to see family and mates back home. There are things you miss out on. I’d love to be in college right now; my [peers] look like they’re having a ball. But it was a decision I made; this is what I want to do. At the end of the day, you weigh up your options and decide what’s more important to you.
What’s Plan B? I’m halfway through my business degree at the University of North Carolina. I don’t really have any clue what I’ll do with it, but I feel like it’ll open some doors for me.
Say I give you $100 and you have to spend it on yourself within the next hour. What are you going to buy? Probably food!
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