I can barely walk says Hewitt
August 11, 2006 12:00
Hewitt retired from a second-round match at the Toronto Masters yesterday when trailing Sweden's Australian Open winner Thomas Johansson 3-6 2-3.
Hewitt could barely walk before the match after pulling up sore following a grinding three-set victory over Juan Ignacio Chela. The former world No. 1 was last night considering having MRI scans of the knee.
Hewitt, 25, who is travelling with his wife Bec and infant daughter Mia, remains in doubt for the Cincinnati Masters next week ahead of the August 28 start to the US Open.
"I've been getting treatment every day. Last night it just flared up again," Hewitt said.
"I could hardly walk this morning when I got out of bed.
"When these things pop up, you've got to look at ways to best prepare yourself as well as possible in the circumstances for the grand slams. That's obviously the US Open in 2½ weeks. I'll maybe have a scan in the next couple of days if it's not improving.
"Hopefully it's not too bad."
The injury throws further doubt on whether Hewitt will make Australia's Davis Cup semi-final against Argentina in Buenos Aires in September.
Hewitt has yet to commit to the tie, citing security fears. The Australian is unpopular in Argentina following a series of spats with its leading players.
Hewitt has battled a string of ankle injuries over the past two years, but has been untroubled by knee problems.
In other matches in Toronto, world No. 1 Roger Federer rolled past France's Sebastien Grosjean 6-3 6-3.
He will now face Russian Dmitry Tursunov, who avenged a Los Angeles final loss by ousting Germany's Tommy Haas 7-5 2-6 6-1.
Scottish 19-year-old prodigy Andy Murray defeated England's Tim Henman 6-2 7-6 (7-3), while Rafael Nadal, Ivan Ljubicic and Xavier Malisse were other winners.
Hewitt takes early swipe
August 10, 2006 12:15am
Hewitt rebounded from a shoddy start to progress 3-6, 6-2, 7-5 to earn a second-round tilt at Australian Open winner Thomas Johansson.
Blighted by a wayward forehand in the opening set, Hewitt steadied to advance in almost two-and-a-half hours.
His victory doubled as a vital psychological gain against tenacious Chela, who looms as Argentina's second singles player behind David Nalbandian for next month's sell-out Cup semi-final in Buenos Aires.
Hewitt is yet to commit to the tie because of safety concerns in the wake of a string of confrontations with Argentine players, Chela included.
And, if Chela's dismissive handshake at the end of yesterday's match was indicative of his true feelings for his Australian rival, Hewitt's trepidation about travelling to Argentina are well founded.
Hewitt desperately needed to succeed after premature defeats in Washington and Los Angeles to Arnaud Clement and Paul Goldstein.
Chela mercilessly punished Hewitt's error-ridden game in the first set but was gradually unravelled by the Adelaide baseliner's finer technique and heart.
Hewitt again struggled to close out the match butchering a hard-earned service break midway through the deciding set.
He broke serve again in the 11th game of the set to earn the right to seal the match - and did so with aplomb.
Hewitt and Chela have been at odds ever since the Argentine spat at the former world champion at the Australian Open last year.
The lanky South American avenged the Melbourne Park loss with a comprehensive win at the Australian Open eight months ago.
Mark Philippoussis, Nathan Healey and Alun Jones all survived difficult first-round challenges in the dBI tournament in New York.
Top seed Philippoussis was warned by the chair umpire for saying "God, dammit" during his 7-6 (7-2), 3-6, 6-3 win over Englishman Martin Lee.
Healey accounted for Italian Fabio Fognini, while Jones dismissed Briton Richard Bloomfield. But Peter Luczak, Robert Smeets and Luke Bourgeois were beaten.
Queenslander Sam Stosur continued her excellent form with a 6-4, 6-2 triumph over American Alexandra Stevenson in Los Angeles.
But Alicia Molik was beaten 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 by Russia's French Open winner Anastasia Myskina in Stockholm.
Guards to protect Hewitt in Argentina July 28
LLEYTON Hewitt will be offered the most comprehensive security plan ever devised for an Australian player for September's Davis Cup showdown with Argentina.
Australian security guards will be dispatched to Buenos Aires for the September 22-24 semi-final after Hewitt expressed concerns for his safety.The former world No. 1 is yet to commit to the tie because of security fears.
The Wimbledon and US Open champion has endured a string of confrontations with Argentine players and was recently further alarmed following a conversation with Swedish captain Mats Wilander.
Hewitt, who Argentine fans listed as one of their five most hated figures in sport, is still mulling over Tennis Australia's security arrangements.
TA chief executive Steve Wood and director of player development Craig Tiley continue to negotiate with Hewitt's manager Rob Aivatoglou.
Wood yesterday outlined plans for team security, which will also be bolstered by International Tennis Federation presence, for what looms as a rugged tie.
"Security's of paramount importance to Tennis Australia for all of our players so we've got a plan in place and we're working through that with Lleyton now," Wood said.
"I think he's looking over that plan at the moment and just considering what he's doing.
"We really are focused on making sure that we've got the best environment available.
"We've got a plan in place in conjunction with the ITF and the Argentinian Tennis Federation and ourselves to deliver the security that makes all the players comfortable."
Wood said the decision to add security guards to the team was a result of "the assessment of the conditions that surround this match".
"It's a very patriotic environment, we've had a lot of success in those environments in the past in Australia and we just thought that this would be an additional comfort for the players," he said.
"I think all of the players are interested in their security and safety and they're happy with the progress that we've made on our security plan and the investments we are making to assist them.
"It's just a very patriotic, galvanising environment to have countries playing against each other.
"We just want to be sure that our team is comfortable and protected on and off the court."
Wilander was stunned by the behaviour of Argentine supporters last year.
He told Hewitt the crowd was incited to boorish levels by soccer hero Diego Maradona, who verbally attacked Swede Robin Soderling.
Hewitt has received feedback from several players, including his friend and occasional practice partner Gaston Gaudio, who probably won't be selected for the tie.
Wood said the Argentine tennis authorities were aware of Australia's concerns "and they've been more than helpful in helping us address them".
Hewitt skipped the opening round win over Switzerland this year, before returning to the Davis Cup squad for the 5-0 quarter-final win over Belarus.
He also was absent from Australia's last tie against Argentina in Buenos Aires while suffering from chickenpox. Australia lost that tie 5-0.
Hewitt suffers shock first rd loss
July 25
LLEYTON Hewitt's US Open build-up had a rocky start yesterday with a first-round loss to journeyman Paul Goldstein in the Los Angeles ATP tournament.
Hewitt, who arrived in Los Angeles the previous day with his family and entourage, paid the price for a lack of preparation as American Goldstein won in straight sets, 6-4 6-4.The Australian had won all four previous matches against Goldstein, who is ranked 86th and lost to Hewitt's countryman Mark Philippoussis in Newport, Rhode Island, two weeks ago.
"I struggled after a couple of weeks off," said Hewitt, who had not played since his Wimbledon quarter-final loss to Marcos Baghdatis.
World No. 13 Hewitt didn't look at all like the player who won the 2001 US Open and 2002 Wimbledon title.
But he said he planned to play a lot in the next few weeks and was confident he would find his form before the US Open starts on August 28.
"I got to hit a lot of balls," Hewitt said. "I want to get my rhythm back and keep that going through the next five or six weeks. Hopefully the positive things will take care of themselves on the court."
Hewitt suffered a similar fate last year, losing his first hardcourt match in his 2005 US Open build-up at the Masters tournament in Toronto, before reaching the semi-finals in the Cincinnati Masters and semis at the Open, where he fell to Roger Federer.
This year he has given himself more time by starting a couple of weeks earlier.
"I couldn't take my chances and I didn't serve great," Hewitt said. "It's disappointing, but there are still a couple of more tournaments to go before the US Open."
Hewitt declined to comment on his reported concerns about his security at September's Davis Cup tie against Argentina in Buenos Aires, which follows recent on-court run-ins with several Argentine players.
Goldstein took a 4-3 lead in the first set on a break and came up a 3-2 leader in the second set after three consecutive breaks on his way to the first-round win.
The American has failed to win more than one match at any tournament since April in Houston, when he made it to the semi-finals.
It was a bad day all around for the Aussies. Earlier former world No. 2 Tommy Haas cruised to a straight-sets victory against Wayne Arthurs.
The German won 6-4 6-4 in just under an hour in temperatures that reached 46C.
Hewitt threat to ditch Davis Cup
July 25, 2006 12:00am
LLEYTON Hewitt has warned Tennis Australia he will miss September's Davis Cup semi-final against Argentina unless security issues are resolved.
Speaking exclusively to the Herald Sun, Hewitt yesterday said he would withdraw from the September 22-24 tie in Buenos Aires if his safety concerns were not allayed."The biggest concern is my safety," said Hewitt, a reviled figure in Argentina after a series of confrontations with Argentine players. "The situation has got steadily worse for visiting teams and it takes only one whacker over there to turn things on its head.
"I've got a family to think about and there are issues around the security situation.
"I've spoken to (Swedish captain) Mats Wilander about playing in Argentina and he says it's a bit of a circus. With what's happened between me and (David) Nalbandian, (Guillermo) Coria and (Juan-Ignacio) Chela, that makes it different again.
"Those guys have been stirring things up. Nalbandian's been talking it up about how much he wants me down there, so there are concerns over the safety issues. My management through Rob (Aivatoglou) has been pro-active in dealings with Tennis Australia, but the message coming back is that security arrangements are not what they could be."
Former world champion Hewitt was last year listed as one of the five most hated figures in Argentine sport.
The list, which includes England soccer player David Beckham, was published before Hewitt and Coria clashed heatedly during a Cup quarter-final in Sydney last year.
Hewitt was counselled by fellow former world No. 1 Wilander over what to expect in Buenos Aires.
A close friend of Argentine French Open champ Gaston Gaudio, Hewitt said Swedish players were aimed at by Argentine fans at the behest of football hero Diego Maradona.
Wilander was so concerned for the safety of his players he considered abandoning the tie.
"Sweden went down there with basically no hope of winning," Hewitt said.
"We're going down there with an outside chance of winning and they're trying to get into a Davis Cup final.
"That's going to make it even rougher. They know they've got a huge chance of getting into the final, but they know we've also got a chance. "What happened with Coria in Sydney last year and the way he carried on hasn't helped in settling things down."
Veteran TA administrator Fenton Coull inspected prospective hotels and toured the semi-final site this month.
TA chief executive Steve Wood has already committed to providing Australia's players with increased levels of security, including taking an Australian security staff.
Without Hewitt, Australia's hopes of reaching December's final against the US or Russia would rest on Peter Luczak, Wayne Arthurs, Mark Philippoussis and Chris Guccione.
