Mystery Illness Still Baffles Hewitt. . . 27 November 2000 Masters Cup, Lisbon

Lleyton Hewitt, Australia's top ranked singles player for next week's Davis Cup tennis final, is still being hindered by symptoms of his mystery illness as he heads into the elite Masters Cup here.

Davis Cup coach Tony Roche said last week Hewitt looked in fine shape following a few days rest and practice at the team's training camp in southern Spain.

The stopover en route to the lucrative ATP tour-ending Masters Cup was planned to help Hewitt overcome the debilitating bug which forced his withdrawal from the Paris Indoor two weeks ago.

But while his energy levels are said to have returned to near normal, team physiotherapist Andrea Bisaz said the 19-year-old was still suffering from a respiratory problem.

Team Australia plans to monitor Hewitt closely this week while they continue to warm up in Marbella.

"We're keeping in touch every day to see how he's doing," Bisaz said.

"He's been playing well in practice but his breathing is still giving him a little bit of trouble."

Better news for Australia was that its other Davis Cup singles player, Pat Rafter, was experiencing no pain in his suspect shoulder despite a heavy workload adapting to the clay courts to be used in the final against Spain in Barcelona.

"Pat's been working very hard and has had no problems with the shoulder," said Bisaz, who worked to get Rafter back into match condition after the shoulder surgery which kept him out last year's Davis Cup final.

Tasmanian Richard Fromberg has also been spending large amounts of time on the practice court in case he is called in for either of the singles players.

Despite his health, Hewitt's most pressing concern is the elite eight-man Masters Cup which starts here this week.

The pony-tailed South Australian has qualified in sixth place, and trails in career head-to-heads with the top four ranked players among his seven rivals - Russian Marat Safin, Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil, American Pete Sampras and Swede Magnus Norman.

Hewitt leads fifth qualifier, Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov, 4-1 and No.7 Alex Corretja of Spain 2-0, while he is 1-1 with No.8 American Andre Agassi.

Hewitt will know just how hard his assignment is when the draw is made later today (Tuesday morning, AEDT), splitting the field into two groups of four to contest the round robin stage, from which the semi-finalists will emerge.

Safin holds a strong lead over Kuerten in the points race and only needs to make the final to secure the prestigious season-ending No.1 spot.

While Kuerten is Safin's closest rival, Sampras and Norman have mathematical chances of grabbing the No.1 spot, but need to win the tournament and have a series of other results fall their way.

Barring unlikely events favouring Sampras, the tournament - worth a dizzying $US3.7 million ($A7.09 million) and which will be held in Sydney next year - will crown the first non-American end-of-year tour leader since Stefan Edberg of Sweden in 1991.



AAP, LISBON, NOV 26 27/11/00 17:38 AEDT

Hewitt ready for top eight shootout 26 November 2000 Sportscentral

Lleyton Hewitt's rapid rise on the ATP tour this year undergoes one last,
gruelling test before the Davis Cup final as he heads into this week's
Masters Cup.

Hewitt has reportedly been refreshed by a visit to the Australian Davis Cup
team's pre-final camp in southern Spain, after complaining that a mystery
illness was taxing his renowned supplies of energy.  

But while Cup coach Tony Roche says the break in Spain did Hewitt's health
the world of good, his confidence heading into the final against Spain will
inevitably be affected by the outcome of his skirmish with the tennis world's
elite at the Masters Cup in Lisbon.  

The teenager's form was sound before his ailment caused him to pull of the
Paris Masters Series earlier this month.  He'd made the final of the
Stuttgart Masters Series tournament the week before after a semi-final
appearance in Basel, Switzerland.  

But Hewitt will face no sterner test than the inaugural Masters Cup, which
starts on Tuesday and offers a dizzying $US3.7 million ($A7.13 million) in
prizemoney.  The top eight players in the world for the year contest the
event -- Marat Safin, Gustavo Kuerten, Pete Sampras, Magnus Norman, Yevgeny
Kafelknikov, Hewitt, Alex Corretja and Andre Agassi.  Hewitt will actually go
in as the player with the best winning ratio this year, his 78.6 per cent
mark from a 59-16 win-loss record just shading Sampras' 78.4 per cent from
40-11.  

Other numbers, however, tend to support Hewitt's rating as one of the
underdogs of the tournament, having qualified in third-last position thanks
mainly to his Stuttgart efforts.  In head-to-heads against the other seven,
he has a 9-10 win-loss record.He enjoys leads only over the man ranked one
place above him, Kafelnikov (4-1), and the rival immediately below him,
Corretja (2-0), and due to the two-group round robin format, may not get the
chance to play either one.  Hewitt is 1-1 with Agassi -- who returned to form
in reaching the semi-finals at Lyon this month only to have to retire hurt --
but they have not played each other for 18 months.  Safin and Kuerten -- who
will joust for the coveted end-of-season top ranking this week -- lead Hewitt
1-0, Sampras leads him 4-1, while Norman leads 2-1.  

Still, the brash Hewitt has made the tennis world respect him through his
four titles this season, his Davis Cup form and through his maiden appearance
in a Grand Slam semi-final, when Sampras beat him in straight sets at the US
Open.  And despite a first round loss to Max Mirnyi at his home country's
Olympics, and the illness he said made him tired and unwell in the stomach,
Hewitt has played strongly in his past two events.

"Lleyton's had some rest and appears to be feeling himself again," Roche said.

The draw for the Masters Cup -- which will be held in Sydney next year --
will be conducted on Monday.  The top two seeds -- Safin and Kuerten -- will
be put into the red and green groups respectively.  The remainder will then
be drawn in pairs -- three and four, five and six, seven and eight -- to also
be split into the two groups.  

The round robin format will determine the four players for the semi-finals.  
Sampras and Norman have outside chances of snatching the year-end top ranking
if they win the tournament and see Safin and Kuerten crash, but most interest
stays with the latter pair.  Safin holds a comfortable lead in the points
race and will secure the number one spot if he makes the final.  

Barring unlikely events favouring Sampras, the tournament will crown the
first non-American end-of-season ATP points leader since Swede Stefan Edberg
in 1991.

Hewitt withdraws with mystery allergy 14 November 2000 Paris Masters Series

PARIS, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Lleyton Hewitt withdrew from the $2.95 million Tennis Masters Series event on Tuesday, saying he had been suffering from a mysterious energy-draining allergy for several weeks.

The fifth-seeded Australian had a first-round bye and his place in the second round will be taken by lucky loser Harel Levy of Israel, who will play American Michael Chang.

"It's been so annoying as we haven't been able to put our finger on what it is," Hewitt, 19, told a news conference.

"I've had a lot of blood tests done and I've had cameras put down my throat. I've had a lot of ugly scenes and they still haven't come up with anything at the moment."

The allergy is a blow to Hewitt's hopes of qualifying for the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Lisbon at the end of the month and also threatens his participation in the Davis Cup final against Spain in Barcelona.

"I've got to give myself every chance possible that I'm going to be 100 percent fit going to Lisbon and also the big one for me is the Davis Cup final," he said.

Hewitt is hopeful that the allergy, which has affected him since a tournament in Toronto in early August, will subside and allow him to play next week in Stockholm.

He may need to pick up points in Stockholm to ensure his participation in the Lisbon event. Spaniard Alex Corretja and Swede Thomas Enqvist are the other leading contenders for the remaining two places in the eight-man field.

Hewitt on a mission to win Davis Cup   7 Nov 2000

A busy week in Stuttgart leads straight into a busy month for Australian teenager Lleyton Hewitt.

His run to the final of the Tennis Masters Series in Stuttgart takes him very close to qualifying for his first season ending championship, the Tennis Masters Cup, he has to cement that claim in the final TMS tournament of the year in Paris-Bercy next week, and he is committed to playing the Davis Cup final for Australia against Spain in Barcelona, 8 to 10 December, the week immediately after Lisbon.

While it is certainly a tough run - made no easier by losing a four-hour 11-minute five-set Stuttgart final to Wayne Ferreira on Sunday - Hewitt is also a player who rises to the big occasions and looks forward to the big matches.

"My number one goal is to win the Davis Cup," he said. "Absolutely, I want to be in top-form come December 8th, going out there and playing singles on day one. That's what I am really working towards.

Though a valuable member of the Australian team that won the cup last year, Hewitt didn't distinguish himself in the final against France, losing to Cedric Pioline in long but straight sets on the opening day, and then losing the dead rubber to Sebastien Grosjean. And he also wants to end John Newcombe's reign as captain and Tony Roche's as coach in the best possible way.

"There's a bit inside me, because it's Newcombe and Roche's last tie, it's going to be special, trying to defend the Cup again with Patrick Rafter back in the team. 

"At the moment I am also trying to forget about that because it's going to come in a few weeks time. I've got a job to do at the moment - I've got to try to make the Masters field."

Lleyton defeated by Ferreira Stuttgart final  *several articles* 5 November 2000

Wayne Ferreira takes out Lleyton Hewitt 
 
11/05/00
Stuttgart final
Today in Stuttgart Wayne Ferreira defeated No. 8 seed Lleyton Hewitt and took
his first Tennis Masters Series title in Stuttgart 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-7(5),
7-6(2), 6-2.
The two had not met before which made the match somewhat unpredictable before
the start. 
Ferreira matches Hewitt shot for shot and more 
The No. 8 seed Lleyton Hewitt was going for his fifth title this year, but
his first Tennis Masters Series title and it is fair to say that the young
Hewitt was favorite going into the match. The man standing between him and
the title was South African veteran Wayne Ferreira.
At ten years his opponents senior, but still in his twenties and a
professional since 1989 it was going to be an interesting battle. And battle
it certainly was.
Ferreira had not won a title at this level since Toronto 1996. Throughout the
tournament he had been looking strong and relaxed, letting his game flow.
On his way to the final defeating Thomas Enqvist and Mark Philippoussis it
was clear Ferreira was enjoying his tennis, "Last week, I was ready to give
up the year and go on holiday. This week, I'm ready to play tennis forever,"
commented Ferreira after his semifinal win over Sebastien Grosjean.
The first set had some awesome baseline rallies and it became clear that the
older player would need to be fit to go the distance with the younger
athlete.
Before the match Ferreira had said that he would try to outgun the physically
small Australian, with hard hitting groundstrokes. Clearly only someone who
had not faced the "New Balls Please" player could misjudge the pace and power
of his groundstrokes.
The first set went in Ferreira's favor 7-6(6), but Hewitt started strongly in
the second and took it 6-3. Hewitt was now on a roll, hitting hard accurate
groundstrokes and working his opponent hard, pushing him to opposite wings of
the court. He stormed ahead with a 5-1 lead in the third.
The experienced Ferreira was however unfazed and patiently closed down the
lead to force a third set tie-break. This time it was Hewitt who won and with
it took a 2-1 lead.
Ferreira was able to keep up with Hewitt's manic pace of play and was able to
match him stroke for stroke waiting for the mistakes. Mistakes came, Hewitt
started to show signs of frustration, his opponent stayed icy calm and took
the fourth set in a tie-break 7-6(2).
By the fifth set the South African took control and Hewitt's emotion and
aggression were in evidence. The quality of tennis throughout this final were
very high, the match could have gone either way and every credit must go to
Wayne Ferreira for a stoic performance. Clearly his holiday plans will be on
hold. 

END--www.atptour.com/magazine/


Ferreira ends four-year title drought in Stuttgart
By Sports.com's MARK LAMPORT-STOKES
November 5, 2000

South African veteran Wayne Ferreira won his first singles title in four
years on Sunday when he beat Australia's Lleyton Hewitt 7-6 3-6 6-7 7-6 6-2
in a marathon Masters Series final in Stuttgart.
Ferreira, whose last tournament victory came in Toronto in 1996, had to
battle back after trailing by one set to two but, after four hours and 11
minutes on court, he served out to love to clinch the match 6-2 in the final
set.
The 29-year-old Ferreira, who won his semi-final in straight sets against
Frenchman Sebastien Grosjean, was generally good value for his victory and
his powerful forehand and huge first serve were both employed to devastating
effect.
Sublime with the ordinary
However both players were guilty of mixing sublime tennis with the downright
ordinary and the 19-year-old Hewitt, who appeared to be well in control of
the match after going two sets to one up, will feel he wasted a golden
opportunity to claim his fifth tour title of the year.
A break apiece for both players left the first set level at 5-5 but Hewitt
then had to dig deep when he trailed 0-30 and 15-40 in the 11th game.
He began his fightback when he unleashed a powerful cross-court forehand to
force a backhand error from his opponent and, when a big sliced second serve
saw Ferreira net his return, the Australian had levelled at deuce.
In all, Hewitt had to save three break points in that 11th game before he
managed to hold service to edge ahead 6-5 but the big-serving Ferreira
comfortably took the 12th game to take the set into a tie-break.
Great opportunity
A Hewitt double-fault gave the South African a 5-3 advantage and he served
for the set leading 5-4. However Ferreira then missed a great opportunity to
clinch the tie-break 7-5 when he pushed a potential winner down the line a
fraction of an inch wide.
But it was then Hewitt's turn to falter and the red-shirted Aussie failed to
take advantage of a short net cord from Ferreira, hitting his top-spin
forehand well beyond the baseline with the point beckoning.
Both players then found a rich vein of form and Ferreira finally sealed the
tiebreak 8-6 on his third set point after a brilliant rally which featured
scorching ground strokes and acute angles.
However Hewitt came storming back and he took the second set 6-3 after a poor
rally ended with Ferreira netting a simple volley when he had his opponent at
his mercy.
Stunning recovery
The Aussie continued in much the same vein in the third set and he surged
into a 5-1 lead before Ferreira engineered a stunning recovery. The South
African saved six set points as he clawed his way back to 5-5 and he then
edged ahead 6-5 with some booming forehands after Hewitt lost the 11th game
on serve.
But the Australian broke break immediately and he eventually clinched the
third set 7-6 after both players produced some sublime tennis in a pulsating
tiebreak.
Undaunted, though, Ferreira managed to prevail in the fourth set as the trend
of glorious winners and glaring unforced errors continued from both players.
The South African won the ensuing tiebreak to level the match at two sets all
after the pair had been on court for three hours and 45 minutes.
Ferreira then stormed into a 4-0 lead in the final set on the back of two
early breaks and, although Hewitt battled gamely to stay in the match, the
South African served out to secure the 14th singles title of his career.

END--http://sl.sports.com/tennis/


11/05/00
Ferreira clinches Stuttgart title
(Tennis Masters Site -- Stuttgart)

Wayne Ferreira ist the Tennis Masters Series - Stuttgart champion. In a
dramatic final, he defeated the Australian teenager Lleyton Hewitt in 4:11
hours 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-7(5), 7-6(2) and 6-1. The South African ended a
four-year drought - he won his last title in Toronto in 1996. 
"It's just fantastic," said Ferreira. "This will have to go down as probably
the best wek ever." For a long time, however, Hewitt had looked the more
likely champion.
The match was played on a high level, both opponents playing up to their
potential. Ferreira was more aggressive, trying to hit winners with that
trademark forehand of his or finishing the point at the net. Hewitt was the
more consistent player and ran down many balls.
After Ferreira won a close first set in the tie-break, Hewitt took command of
the match. The 19-year-old, quick-footed, agile and consistent, broke
Ferreira twice to take the second set 6-3 and was soon leading 5-1 in the
third set. He served for the set twice and held six set points on Ferreira's
serve, but lost six games in a row.
Ferreira, however, failed to capitalize on that. Serving for the set at 6-5,
he allowed Hewitt to break back and the Australian took the tie-break 7-5.
The fourth set went without a break, and both players found themselves in yet
another tie-break. This time Ferreira clearly dominated, winning 7-2.
The South African broke his opponent twice in the beginning of the fourth
set, and after 4:11 hours he converted his first match point for the title.
"To finally win a tournament like as big as this, in this stage of my career,
it's probably the best thing ever," Ferreira said. "My best matches have
always been indoors."
Hewitt, weakened by a virus he caught a few weeks ago, was gracious in
defeat: "Of course I am disappointed, but all credit to Wayne. He is such a
great fighter and a strong competitor."
END--http://www.masters-series.com/stuttgart/frameset.html