Felix Auger Aliassime vs Rinky Hijikata Prediction U.S. Open - New York · Aug 31, 2026

Analysis

This is a first-round US Open meeting between two very different profiles: Felix Auger-Aliassime, a big-serving, first-strike hard-courter whose game has always been well suited to New York's medium-fast conditions, and Rinky Hijikata, a compact, scrappy competitor who thrives on return depth, movement and long rallies. Over five sets the serve gap is the decisive structural edge - Auger-Aliassime's ability to hold cheaply and produce free points on demand is exactly what wears down a returner-first opponent across three-plus hours. Hijikata's route is to make the Canadian play extra balls, drag him into extended baseline exchanges and pounce on any patch of loose forehand play, which is realistic enough for a set but harder to sustain over the full distance. Night-session conditions in New York, with heavier air and a slower ball, help Hijikata marginally by taking a little sting out of the serve, so a dropped set is a genuine possibility. The most likely shape is Auger-Aliassime winning while conceding one set somewhere in the middle of the match. Best-of-five format tends to punish the lower-percentage server over time, which is why the outright pick leans clearly one way while the set handicap stays cautious.