Giant-slaying Aussie wildcard surges into the fourth round of US Open with another dominant performance at Flushing Meadows

Australian wildcard Rinky Hijikata has continued his daring run through the US Open draw to reach the fourth round at Flushing Meadows.

Hijikata withstood a thrilling backlash from Chinese pioneer Zhizhen Zhang to record a 6-3 6-3 4-6 6-3 victory over the world No. 67 to rush into the last 16 of the final grand slam of the season.

The landmark win secured the 22-year-old a fourth-round date with American 10th seed Frances Tiafoe on Monday (AEST), a new career-high ranking in the top 80 in the world and a minimum payday of $284,000 ($A440. 000).

That nearly doubles Hijikata’s gains in a season that already saw a breakthrough, with compatriot Jason Kubler at the Australian Open in January.

Hijiikata had announced his arrival to New York fans last year when he took the opening set from Rafael Nadal in a thrilling first round under lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The Australian wildcard is guaranteed to leave Flushing Meadows with at least $440,000 in prize money

But few could have predicted that world No. 110 would perform in the second week at Flushing Meadows a year later, especially after Hijikata needed Tennis Australia’s generosity to enter the main draw with a wild card.

But the Sydney-born son of Japanese immigrant parents has more than justified TA’s faith with an inspired run.

Shortly after his first-round win over Pavel Kotov, Hijikata was rocked by a fatal shooting at his girlfriend’s college, the University of North Carolina, where he also attended for two years.

He dedicated his second-round win over Marton Fucsovics to his former classmates and celebrated with gusto after claiming a third consecutive scalp on Friday night.

Hijikata hit winners from both wings and had Zheng under the pump from the start.

Hijikata next faces local hopes and 10th seed Frances Tiafoe for a spot in the quarterfinals

Zheng was clearly tired of the energy undercutting five-set victories in his first two matches, including a monumental victory over seventh seed and 2022 Open runner-up Casper Ruud, and had to fend off eight break points in the first two sets.

But there was no denying Hijikata, eventually reaching a two-set lead with three service breaks as Zheng struggled to handle the Australian’s firepower.

Bravely bidding to become the first Chinese man in the 56-year open era to make the last 16 of a grand slam, Zheng made one last stand despite needing two medical timeouts due to an old problem.

Shortening the points, Zheng’s daring tactics paid off as he took the third set after an epic service game lasting nearly 10 minutes.

But the effort hurt the 26-year-old as Hijikata raised the bar and made two decisive breaks in the fourth set before sealing victory with his twelfth ace on his first match point after three hours and ten minutes on the court.