Australian Open 2023: Jason Kubler and Rinky Hijikata win men’s doubles final

Twelve months after Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis shocked the tennis world by winning the men’s doubles at the Australian Open, another unlikely pairing has pulled off the same incredible feat.

Jason Kubler and Rinky Hijikata are meeting in a tournament for the first time and are now Grand Slam champions after beating Hugo Nys and Jan Zieliński 6-4, 7-6 at Rod Laver Arena on Saturday night.

For Kubler in particular, the victory meant an extraordinary turning point in his fate.

A brilliant junior who looked to be great, the hapless Kubler has been plagued by injuries throughout his career and never really got a chance to show how good he is until he only recently recovered.

He gave a taste of what he’s capable of when he qualified at Wimbledon last year and finished in the last 16 but didn’t get the ranking points he deserved as no points were awarded after Russian players were removed from all- England Club had been banned.

Earlier this month his luck took another turn for the better.

Kubler, the first reserve for the Australia team at the United Cup, was called up at the last minute to replace Nick Kyrgios and responded by winning both singles games – against Brit Dan Evans and Spaniard Albert Ramos Vinolas.

Kubler’s singles victories, both against higher-ranked opponents, took him to 84th in the world, his highest-ever finish to earn an automatic spot at the Australian Open.

Hijikata, who has Japanese roots, was in the spotlight when he defeated Rafael Nadal at last year’s US Open.

Originally published as Jason Kubler and Rinky Hijikata Win Men’s Doubles at the Australian Open