Nishioka and Popyrin will take on each other in the quarter-final of the Adelaide International 1 on January 6.
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Yoshihito Nishioka has moved quickly to start planning for 2023. He eliminated an in-form Holger Rune in the opening round before dispatching Mackenzie McDonald with ease to advance to the quarterfinals in Adelaide. The third week of February of last year saw the top-ranked Japanese make his first-ever quarterfinal appearance on the main tour. He saved his best tennis for the second half of the year. He lost to Nick Kyrgios in the Washington final, captured his second ATP championship in Seoul, and attained his highest ranking of 36.
A top-20 player and an American were both defeated by Alexei Popyrin this week as he advanced to the quarterfinals with victories of 6-4 7-6 against Felix Auger Aliassime and 4-6 6-4 6-3 against Marcos Giron, respectively. In contrast to Yoshihito Nishioka, the Australian had to compete in qualifying rounds to earn a spot in the main draw in Adelaide. The former ATP Singapore champion had a difficult year and only won five main-draw matches in tour-level competitions, so this is a fantastic start to the season and a much-needed outcome for him. He has played in one ATP quarterfinal and lost to Cameron Norrie in Atlanta in 2019 in straight sets before defeating Matthew Ebden in Singapore in 2021.
| Nishioka vs Popyrin | Match details |
|---|---|
| Date | January 6, 2023 |
| Surface | Hard courts |
| Tournament | Adelaide International 1 |
| Stage | Quarter-final |
| Time (India) | 6 am (tentative) |
| Time (Australia) | 11:30 am (tentative) |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Mackenzie McDonald | 6-4, 6-3 (W) |
| Holger Rune | 6-2, 4-6, 4-6 (W) |
| Carlos Alcaraz | 6-4, 6-4 (L) |
| Aslan Karatsev | 6-3, 6-4 (W) |
| Taylor Fritz | 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (7-9), 3-6 (L) |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Marcos Giron | 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 (W) |
| Felix Auger-Aliassime | 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) (W) |
| Wu Yibing | 4-6, 6-3, 5-7 (W) |
| Zhang Zhizhen | 6-2, 6-3 (W) |
| Henri Laaksonen | 4-6, 6-3, 4-6 (L) |
The two are yet to face each other so far in their careers. Both athletes are riding a wave of momentum and believe they have a good chance of making it further in Adelaide. Yoshihito Nishioka, however, is the superior player between the two, and he will hold the upper hand provided he remains healthy and plays to his full potential.
Nishioka and Popyrin will take on each other in the quarter-final of the Adelaide International 1 on January 6.
Australia – beIN Sports
Canada – TSN
India – Tennis TV
UK – Amazon Prime Video
USA – Tennis Channel
The matches of both men’s and women’s can be live streamed on demand on the Tennis TV app and website.
