Rafael Nadal's classy act for little-known Aussie young gun Rinky Hijikata after high quality clash
Short of winning the match, Rinky Hijikata could not have done much more to earn the respect of the tennis world on his grand slam debut.
The 21-year-old from Sydney took the first set off 22-time slam champion Rafael Nadal, before bravely going down in four sets 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The US Open crowd gave the young Aussie a standing ovation as he left the court, for providing them with more than three hours of thrilling action against the legendary Spaniard.
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And in a sign of how impressive his major debut was, a shirtless Nadal stood and applauded the young gun off the court, a show of great respect from the tour veteran.
"The former champ had to play some of his best tennis... it took a forehand of that magnitude to finish the match off for Nadal," Australian great Todd Woodbridge said of the Nadal match winner, which was a monster forehand slap down the line past Hijikata.
"A marvellous effort from the 21-year-old from Sydney."
Rafael Nadal applauds Australian debutant Rinky Hijikata off the court after a four-set thriller at the US Open. Nine
Fellow tennis legend Jelena Dokic is convinced Hijikata is going to fight his way to the top of the sport in coming years.
"A great first set, but that fourth set was actually closer than the scoreline shows," Dokic said.
"(Hijikata has) showed what he's made of, so much to build on here to try get into the top 100.
"I'm sure we'll see a lot more of him, so much to be proud of."
Nadal's experience was the overwhelming theme of the match as the 21-year-old Australian continued to push the tennis legend after taking the first set 6-4.
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Hijikata was rewarded for some aggressive play at the net with his serve and volley game putting his opponent to the test.
But Nadal worked his way back from some tough situations to take the match in four.
Hijikata did not go down without a fight, especially in the final set, with the Aussie holding three break points to level at 4-all but Nadal somehow mustered the energy to fight back, in an eighth game that went for almost 10 minutes.
The next game went even longer as the Aussie saved five match points before Nadal eventually powered home.
The Spaniard's health was a key storyline going into the tournament, playing sparingly since returning from an abdominal tear that forced him out of Wimbledon, the day before his scheduled semi-final against Nick Kyrgios.
"It's about being humble enough to accept the process, to build the positive things day after day," he said afterwards, referencing the fact that he'd only played one match before today since Wimbledon.
He remains undefeated at grand slams this year, but said that the decision to pull out of Wimbledon was worse than any loss.
"Retiring in my opinion is much tougher than losing," he said in his post-match press conference.
"I'm having an amazing year in terms of results but in the same moment I'm having a tough year because I went through the rib and I went through the foot and then the ab."
Next up in the second round is Italy's Fabio Fognini.
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