While all the attention in Brisbane has been on the pairing of Nick Kyrgios and Novak Djokovic, and Kimberly Birrell’s brilliant wins, Priscilla Hon has been quietly going about her business.
Hon teamed up with Anna Kalinskaya to receive a wildcard in the doubles draw after successfully qualifying for the singles event. The pair have been on a streak hotter than the Queensland sun with three straight-set wins to reach the final.
En route, they dispatched No.1 seeds Hao-Ching Chan and Lyudmyla Kichenok in the quarters and took out Nicole Melichar-Martinez (former partner of Ellen Perez) and Tímea Babos yesterday 6-1 7-5 to make the final.
The pair will tackle Russian duo Diana Shnaider and Mirra Andreeva tonight on Pat Rafter Arena. This is Hon’s first WTA doubles final, and she’s done it in her home city of Brisbane. Although the 26-year-old has been ranked as high as No.91 in the format, she’s currently world No.523, so it's no surprise that she has jumped significantly to No.181 in the live rankings.
Birrell's run comes to an end
Kimberly Birrell’s dream run at the Brisbane International ended with a tight loss to Anhelina Kalinina. The Aussie did have a match point in the third set, but ultimately went down 4-6 6-1 7-5.
Despite the loss, she was positive about the week.
"I had so much fun playing here this week. It's such a good way to start my year, I hope that I can keep it rolling," she said.
"Of course, disappointed getting so close, just falling short, but I'm definitely going to focus on the positives."
Birrell heads to the Australian Open qualifying after missing out on wildcards given out in December, but after rising to a career-high No.99 in the live rankings, she becomes Australia's top-ranked female in the singles.
On the men’s side, Jordan Thompson had to retire in his quarter-final against defending champion Grigor Dimitrov.
After dropping the first set 6-1, he retired 1-2 down in the second set, as Thompson was seen holding his calf and ankle area during the match and received a medical timeout.
The world No.27 has pulled out of the Adelaide tournament next week, where he is coming off the best season of his life, and it’ll be a cruel blow if he misses or is hampered at his home Grand Slam.
All aboard the Kubler/Hijikata show
The 2023 Australian Open doubles champions have made a welcome return in Brisbane.
The pair only made the draw as alternates after fourth seeds Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski pulled out of the tournament, chalking up two wins to make it through to the semi-finals.
Unfortunately, they were unable to take to the court for that match with Kubler, protecting a right knee injury before Australian Open qualifying next week.
Elsewhere, James Duckworth and Aleksandar Vukic made the quarter-finals with a tight win over second seeds Harri Heliövaara and Henry Patten. They also handed a walkover to their opponents as Vukic was protecting a right arm injury.
Aussies in Day 7 action
Priscilla Hon is the sole surviving Aussie in all events. She will play in the women’s doubles final tonight on Pat Rafter Arena.
Elsewhere, singles semi-final action gets underway as Aryna Sabalenka plays young star Andreeva, while qualifier Polina Kudermetova takes on unseeded Kalinina in the women’s draw.
In the men's field, Novak Djokovic’s conqueror, big-serving Reilly Opelka, plays another big-serving giant in Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in a battle of the aces. In the other match, defending champion Grigor Dimitrov takes on Jiri Lehecka.
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