Final articles 2002 - thanks Robyn
wimbledon.org
Hewitt Cruises to Men's Title
Barry Newcombe
Sunday, July 7, 2002
Lleyton Hewitt, the 21-year-old Australian, claimed the Wimbledon title in
straight sets on the Centre Court this afternoon with victory over the surprise
finalist, 20-year-old David Nalbandian of Argentina, 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 in one hour
and 57 minutes.
Hewitt confirmed his world number one ranking as he took the title for the first
time in his first Wimbledon final against another debutant who was playing both
at Wimbledon and on the Centre Court for the first time.
Nalbandian, seeded 28th, started badly to trail 4-0 but began to pick up more
points and then games as he became accustomed to the demands of the final. The
match was dominated by Hewitt's pinpoint accuracy on either flank, his certainty
when he made his occasional attacks at the net and, above all, by the
unshakeable belief that this was going to be his day.
Hewitt, in his fourth Wimbledon, is the first Australian to win since Pat Cash
in 1987 and brings the total of Gentlemen's Singles titles won by Australians at
The Championships to 21. Like Cash, Hewitt clambered across the crowd to greet
his friends and family after winning his second Grand Slam (he was US Open
champion last September).
At the start, Hewitt won the toss and chose to receive on a cloudy and cool
afternoon with some light breezes blowing around the court. Nalbandian started
uncertainly with a double fault and out of the next four points hit two service
winners and two errors as Hewitt broke serve.
Hewitt held serve easily and broke Nalbandian again in the third game but this
time the Argentine saved two break points before being beaten on the third by a
backhand pass.
Hewitt held to love with an ace to lead 4-0 and then, to the delight of the
crowd, Nalbandian won a game after saving two break points. He had two chances
to take Hewitt's serve in the next game but the Australian held on for 5-1 with
a smash.
The pressure swung on to Nalbandian again and a volley from Hewitt and two
errors by Nalbandian put him three set points down. Nalbandian saved with a
diving backhand volley and then double faulted to lose the set 6-1 after 32
minutes.
In the second set , Hewitt held serve from break point down to lead 1-0 and then
the players left the court because of a light shower. When they returned, a male
streaker ran on to the court and held up the resumption briefly before he was
caught by security staff and led away.
Hewitt broke for 2-0 on his fourth break point but the court erupted after the
next game when Nalbandian broke Hewitt for the first time. Hewitt saved a first
break point but the second went to Nalbandian after a high speed rally that
ended with the Argentine hitting a backhand volley winner. Nalbandian held serve
for 2-2.
Hewitt held serve to lead 3-2 after one hour and Nalbandian held for 3-3. With
Hewitt serving at 30-30, play was suspended because of rain.
The match resumed after a delay of 32 minutes and Hewitt held for 4-3. Hewitt
next broke for 5-3, shouting encouragement to himself twice with the phrase
"Come on" echoing around the court.
The Australian increased his lead to two sets to love, clinching the second set
6-3. Hewitt was 0-30 down and then won four points running for the set after one
hour and 16 minutes.
To start the third set, Nalbandian saved a break point and held for 1-0. Hewitt
then held after saving two break points and took Nalbandian's serve on a second
break point with a backhand winner to lead 2-1. But Hewitt could not reinforce
his break and lost serve for 2-2.
The first point won by Hewitt in the fifth game was one of the best of the
final. He was pulled out wide by a drive from Nalbandian but not only managed to
reach the ball but to return it cross court and close to the net for a winner.
Hewitt broke again for 3-2 but on break point Nalbandian appeared to stop
playing when he believed a baseline shot was out. But the shot stood. It was
cruel for Nalbandian but his rival had a lead once more.
Hewitt, with the end now in sight, held serve to love for the first time since
the fourth game of the first set, and he was up 4-2. Nalbandian hit his sixth
and seventh double faults as the next game fell into Hewitt's hands, leaving the
Australian to serve for the match at 5-2.
Hewitt started with a service winner to 15-0. Then a smash took the score to
30-0. Next Nalbandian hit a forehand out to give match point to Hewitt. A double
fault followed, 40-15. Then Nalbandian hit his forehand long. And a new Champion
was born.
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BBC
Sunday, 7 July, 2002, 15:55 GMT 16:55 UK
Awesome Hewitt wins Wimbledon
Lleyton Hewitt beat David Nalbandian
6-1 6-3 6-2
Lleyton Hewitt thrashed David Nalbandian to claim his first Wimbledon title and
emphatically underscore his status as the new dominant force in men's tennis.
The 21-year-old Australian swept aside the unheralded Argentine in one of the
most one-sided finals in Wimbledon history.
Victory gave Hewitt his second Grand Slam title, following last September's win
at the US Open.
Pete Sampras was the man Hewitt took apart on that day, and the 21-year-old
Australian seems set to dominate the world game just like Sampras did in the
1990s.
Hewitt's victory was not achieved with the natural grasscourt style of Sampras
but instead with fast feet and baseline power more reminiscent of Andre Agassi,
the last man to win Wimbledon from the back of the court 10 years ago.
Nalbandian, the first Wimbledon debutant in the Open era to get through to the
final, had never even played on Centre Court before.
Because of that he was allowed to practice in the famous arena before the match
but that was not enough to prevent a double fault on his very first point.
Hewitt went on to break his opponent in that opening encounter and that set the
tone as the Australian took the first set 6-1.
The top seed had dropped just two sets in the whole of the tournament and so,
having lost the first, Nalbandian knew he was facing a near impossible task.
Early in the second set the match saw its first rain delay which was only around
12 minutes - although that was enough time for a male streaker to expose
Wimbledon's security once again by dancing around Centre Court.
Once he was removed attention switched back to the naked ambition of Hewitt to
become the first Australian to win Wimbledon since Pat Cash in 1987.
The world number one broke Nalbandian straight away to lead 2-0 - and although
his opponent immediately broke back a second rain delay interrupted the
Argentine's momentum.
When the players returned there was another break by Hewitt, which gave him the
chance to serve out for the second set.
The players swapped breaks early in the third set but then a third break went
Hewitt's way - thanks in part to an overrule which Nalbandian disputed heavily
even though replays showed the umpire was correct.
That gave the Australian a 3-2 lead and when he held for 4-2 the crown was
within touching distance.
Another break left Hewitt serving for the title and, after a nervous double
fault at championship point, he held to 15.
As he fell to his knees on the famous grass of Centre Court a new era in men's
tennis had truly begun.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
BBC
Sunday, 7 July, 2002, 12:42 GMT 13:42 UK
Gamewatch: Hewitt v Nalbandian
All the action from Centre Court as Lleyton Hewitt shrugs off rain delays, a
streaker and David Nalbandian to become Wimbledon champion.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 6-2 Nalbandian
Hewitt falls to the floor after serving out to win his first Wimbledon title.
The Australian is a deserving champion on the grass and there is no telling how
many more Grand Slam titles he will win.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 5-2 Nalbandian
Two double faults spell the end for Nalbandian. He has done marvellously well to
reach the Wimbledon final but has wilted in the face of Hewitt's considerable
challenge.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 4-2 Nalbandian
Hewitt's serve has looked largely impressive and it consolidates his advantage.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 3-2 Nalbandian
Boos from the crowd greet Hewitt's latest break as Nalbandian protests a tight
line call with umpire Mike Morrisey.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 2-2 Nalbandian
Hewitt shows signs of tightness with victory looming and surrenders his serve to
Nalbandian after a long rally.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 2-1 Nalbandian
The sun makes an unexpected visit to Centre Court and momentarily puts
Nalbandian off his service game. Hewitt earns a break point and takes it
spectacularly with a drilled backhand winner.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 1-1 Nalbandian
Despite being recognised for his supreme backcourt game, Hewitt is coming up
with a serve-and-volley game when it matters. The Australian fends off break
point and crashes home a smash to hold.
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 0-1 Nalbandian
Nalbandian is playing well below the ability he has shown in reaching his first
Grand Slam final, but he hangs on to hold his opening service game of the third
set.
Second set:
Hewitt 6-1 6-3 Nalbandian
The world number one falls behind in his service game but fights back and wins
the second set with an ace. He is now just one set from winning his first
Wimbledon title and looks unstoppable.
Hewitt 6-1 5-3 Nalbandian
Hewitt is pumped up and he breaks Nalbandian to put himself within sight of a
two-set lead.
Hewitt 6-1 4-3 Nalbandian
Hewitt shows characteristic composure to hold serve and edges ahead in the
second set.
Hewitt 6-1 3-3 (resumption) Nalbandian
The players are back on court again and will resume at 3-3 and 30-30 on Lleyton
Hewitt's serve.
Fans are not anticipating a long delay and spirits on the newly-named
"Hewitt Hill" are very high. Hundreds of Australians have assembled
where British tennis fans usually cheer Tim Henman, to watch their hero on a
giant screen.
Hewitt 6-1 3-3 (rain delay) Nalbandian
Nalbandian wins the best rally of the match with a bold drop shot. The Argentine
is enjoying himself at last, but rain halts play again at 30-30.
Hewitt 6-1 3-3 Nalbandian
The standard of tennis is pretty high now and Nalbandian is making a match of
it.
Hewitt 6-1 3-2 Nalbandian
Hewitt answers with a solid service game.
Hewitt 6-1 2-2 Nalbandian
Visibly more confident after his success in the last game, Nalbandian squares
the set to the delight of his fans - among them delegates from the Argentine
embassy.
Hewitt 6-1 2-1 Nalbandian
Centre Court erupts as Nalbandian secures his first break with a cheeky lob over
Hewitt who is caught flat at the net.
Hewitt 6-1 2-0 Nalbandian
The assorted interruptions have done little to help Nalbandian's game. He
bounces back from 0-40 but then gives another break to Hewitt.
Hewitt 6-1 1-0 (resumption) Nalbandian
The players return after a rain delay to be greeted by a tenacious streaker, who
hurdles the net in his full glory before being escorted from Centre Court.
Hewitt's girlfriend Kim Clijsters averts her eyes but even those in the Royal
Box have a chuckle at the surprising events before the crowd settles down to the
resumption of play.
Hewitt 6-1 1-0 (rain delay) Nalbandian
Nalbandian forces break point again but then plays a series of loose shots to
hand the game to Hewitt.
First set:
Hewitt 6-1 Nalbandian
Nalbandian ends the first set as he started it - with a double fault. Hewitt has
used his unflappable tennis to exploit his opponent's nerves to the glee of many
Australians in the crowd.
Hewitt 5-1 Nalbandian
Hewitt shows his grit to fend off the first break points on his serve and holds.
Hewitt 4-1 Nalbandian
The crowd gets behind a dispirited Nalbandian and he rallies from more break
points to win his first game of the final with his first winners of the day. The
Argentine has already made 12 unforced errors.
Hewitt 4-0 Nalbandian
Another easy service game for Hewitt who is closing out the first set in
double-quick time.
Hewitt 3-0 Nalbandian
Nalbandian looks nervous and is being made to work hard for every point. He
serves his second double fault at deuce and Hewitt pounces to break for a second
time.
Hewitt 2-0 Nalbandian
No sign of nerves for Hewitt. The world number one finds his range with a couple
of deep backhands and holds to 15.
Hewitt 1-0 Nalbandian
A nightmare start for Nalbandian, who double faults with his first serves of the
match and is soon broken by the probing baseline shots of Hewitt.
The players step onto Centre Court to great ovation. Lleyton Hewitt wins the
toss and elects to receive.
Wimbledon is faced with the rare prospect of a baseline-dominated final and is
guaranteed a new men's singles champion.
Australian Hewitt starts as overwhelming favourite and he has plenty of support,
with girlfriend - and tennis ace - Kim Clijsters in attendance.
"Henman Hill" has been renamed "Hewitt Hill" for the
occasion, with plenty of Australians watching the big screen outside Court One.
Argentine Nalbandian had not even played in a senior tournament on grass before
this year, but has an arsenal of strokes to deploy against the world number one.
Aussie rules
Hewitt wins second Grand Slam title with Wimbledon rout
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -- If there were ever any doubts about Lleyton Hewitt's
status as the world's top player, there aren't any more.
The 21-year-old Australian crushed David Nalbandian in straight sets Sunday in
the Wimbledon final to win his second Grand Slam title, solidify his No. 1
ranking and confirm the changing of the guard in men's tennis.
In a tournament where aging former champions Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi lost
in the second round, Hewitt swept through the draw without a hitch and put on a
ruthless performance Sunday to win 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 in under two hours.
The match shaped up as a mismatch: the top-seeded Hewitt against No. 28
Nalbandian, a 20-year-old Argentine playing in his first grass court tournament
and his first match on Centre Court.
And a mismatch it was.
Hewitt never wavered, whipping his ground strokes with power and precision,
dictating the points, making very few errors. Nalbandian couldn't cope with the
occasion or Hewitt's supremacy, making countless unforced errors.
Hewitt's only show of nerves came when he served a double fault on his first
match point at 5-2, 40-0. But when Nalbandian hit a shot long on the next point,
Hewitt fell onto his back in exhilaration
He got back to his feet and slammed a ball into the crowd. After shaking hands
with Nalbandian, Hewitt left his racket on his chair and pumped his fists above
his head to the crowd.
Hewitt then climbed up through the stands to the guest box, emulating the
celebrations of Pat Cash, the last Australian to win Wimbledon in 1987.
Hewitt embraced his coach Jason Stoltenberg, kissed his girlfriend Kim Clijsters
and hugged his parents before returning to the court to accept the winner's
trophy.
wimbledon.org
Lleyton Fulfils Lifelong Dream
Ronald Atkin
Sunday, July 7, 2002
Lleyton Hewitt became the first Australian to win the Wimbledon men's singles
title for 15 years when he defeated Argentina's David Nalbandian 6-1, 6-3, 6-2.
Pat Cash, who was commentating on the match for BBC television, was the last
successful Australian here, in 1987, but the final was watched from the Royal
Box by two other Aussies who won Wimbledon - Frank Sedgman (1952) and Neale
Fraser (1960). A third distinguished former Australian player, Ken Rosewall, was
also an official guest, but the best he could achieve here was to finish
runner-up on four occasions.
There was never any chance of Hewitt joining Rosewall as a beaten finalist. He
dominated a nervous opponent in the opening set and then used his speed and
astonishing range of strokes to hold at bay Nalbandian's counter-attack.
Because he had not played on Centre Court at all during the fortnight,
Nalbandian was permitted a half-hour practice session there before the final,
but it did not appear to have done the 20-year-old Argentinian much good when
the finalists appeared on a grey, overcast afternoon.
However, Nalbandian's discomfort and lack of touch early on only served to get
the spectators on his side, though none of them wanted to tackle the
pronunciation of his surname. Instead, there were cries of "David" and
one of "C'mon Big Dave". Most of the Australian support seemed to be
concentrated on the slope outside the stadium, watching on the giant TV screen.
Perhaps Henman Hill should have been renamed Hewitt Hill for the day.
The forecast by one Italian expert that this final between two baseliners would
be "a match on green clay" was not proved true, particularly in the
first set, when Nalbandian found it difficult to keep the rallies going. Having
lost the first four games, Nalbandian raised the biggest cheer of the match so
far by holding serve with 23 minutes played.
Having won his first Grand Slam at the US Open last September, Hewitt
immediately set his sights on Wimbledon. To do so, he discarded the trappings of
his teenage years, the ponytail and the back-to-front cap. The hair was cut
short but there was no reining back on the zest and feisty approach. This was
crystal clear as Hewitt won the first set in 33 minutes. "I wish you were
British, Lleyton," yelled a lone voice from the crowd.
After one game in the second set, won by Hewitt, the players were driven off by
a brief shower. On their return, before play could resume, a male streaker
appeared on court, the first since a woman halted play in the 1996 final between
Richard Krajicek and MaliVai Washington.
Play was again suspended, this time for 33 minutes, at 3-3 in the second set
and, when the action resumed, Hewitt swept the next three games and went two
sets clear, to a yell from the crowd "Come on Aussie, you're the
tiger."
By this stage, Hewitt was doing plenty of shouting on his own account, pointing
to his family and friends in the VIP box and pumping himself up in the fashion
that has become so familiar from this all-action world number one.
In the final set, Nalbandian's resistance was no more than token and it was all
over in one hour and 57 minutes. Nalbandian's total of six games was the lowest
since John McEnroe defeated Jimmy Connors for the loss of four games in the 1984
final.
As Nalbandian's forehand flew beyond the baseline at match point, Hewitt fell
flat on his back, arms thrust upwards. As Boris Becker, three times a champion
here, pointed out: "This is the most wonderful moment in a tennis player's
life, winning Wimbledon for the first time."
After offering his commiserations to Nalbandian, the Australian climbed up into
the VIP box to embrace his mother and father, Glynn and Cherilyn, his
girlfriend, Kim Clijsters, and his coach, Jason Stoltenberg.
Then he told the crowd, and the TV audience: "This is a real ripper. It's
an unbelievable feeling. Growing up as a kid in Australia, I always hoped I
would be playing for this trophy. To finally get the chance means so much to
me."
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theage.com.au
Hewitt rules in straight sets
By Linda Pearce
July 8 2002
For more than a week, no player had seemed capable of denying Lleyton Hewitt his
first Wimbledon title, and, indeed, nobody could. David Nalbandian has only been
a tennis somebody for a matter of days, and was overwhelmed by the first
Australian champion since Pat Cash in 1987, in the most one-sided final since
1984.
A baseliner has won the Wimbledon title for the first time since Andre Agassi a
decade ago, and Hewitt was undeniably well suited by the slower pace of this
year's courts and balls. He was also playing against a brave but unknown
Argentinian contesting his first senior tournament on grass, and who was
predictably outclassed.
Hewitt won the US Open 10 months ago, and has maintained his perfect record in
grand slam finals, achieving in 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 fashion, and in less than two
hours, what his friend and Davis Cup teammate Patrick Rafter had been unable to
manage in the previous two finals, against Pete Sampras (2000) and Goran
Ivanisevic.
"I kept having to look up on the scoreboard to see if it was real,"
said Hewitt, who thanked his family, friends and support staff. "I can't
believe how well I've played these two weeks. It's an unbelievable
feeling," he said, adding that he had thought nothing could top his US
Open-No. 1 double of last year, "but now this. This is a real ripper."
Nalbandian said Hewitt had "played very, very good today. It was a big day
for me, my first grass tournament, and I hope next year when I come here for the
second time I'm going to win the final."
The 21-year-old from Adelaide accepted the winner's cheque of almost $1.5
million and the Challenge Trophy from the Duke of Kent, having thrown himself
onto his back after a Nalbandian forehand sailed long on his second match point.
As with Cash, Hewitt climbed into the players' box to rejoice - with coach Jason
Stoltenberg, family, and girlfriend Kim Clijsters.
After holding it for 15 years, it was a baton Cash was happy to pass, believing
he had held the "last Aussie" tag for far too long. "The
Wimbledon championship is the most important one to win for all Australians,
given the fantastic heritage we have in the tournament," Cash wrote in his
Sunday newspaper column. "I like the idea of someone as gutsy as me taking
over the mantle. Lleyton is as mentally tough as old nails. He just wants to win
at all costs."
Nalbandian had nothing to lose, but nor did he ever look like winning. The world
No. 32 perhaps tried too hard to hit Hewitt off the court, rather than staying
back and rallying from the baseline. Hewitt ran absolutely everything down.
Nalbandian had been allowed to practice with his coach on centre court for about
half an hour, having not had the opportunity to play a match on the famous arena
and got no higher in the pecking order than court one for his semi-final against
Xavier Malisse. But it did not prevent him being initially overawed.
Nalbandian started and ended the first set with nervous double faults, and was
annihilated in the 33 minutes in between, losing all but one service game and
pushing Hewitt in return only once. When he was not being forced into errors, he
was making his own, and even the crowd groaned with sympathy and disappointment
at his plight.
Hewitt looked untouchable, serving solidly, keeping an immaculate length,
plucking winners from his strings when required and doing what he needed to do
just when it was necessary. Yet it was almost enough to just keep the ball in
play at first against the nerve-riddled Nalbandian, deserted by the composure
that had served him so well in the earlier rounds.
Nalbandian appeared calmed a little by the chance offered by the rain break at
0-1 in the second set. He dropped serve immediately on resumption, but then
steadied to convert his sixth break point of the match, find some rhythm at last
and edge his way back into what had been a horribly one-sided contest.
Then the rain came again, at 30-30 on the Hewitt serve in the seventh game, and
the favourite returned to win seven of the next eight points and reassert his
authority. The third set was a contest for a time, before Hewitt comfortably
closed out the match to become the 12th Australian man to win the title.
The tension had been broken as the players returned from a rain break early in
the second set, when a streaker cavorted around the court, untroubled by any
security response for several minutes.
Clijsters laughed; Cherilyn Hewitt, Lleyton's mother, was comically
open-mouthed. It was the most unexpected sight of a day in which most of what
was achieved and witnessed was glorious indeed.
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theage.com.au
Learning to love Lleyton: a fighter who hates losing
By Peter Fray
July 8 2002
Self-effacing, he is not. Nor is he sweet-tempered, witty or supremely
intelligent.
But the world of tennis, and Australia in general, have started to love Lleyton
Hewitt, not so much for what he is, but for what he promises to become.
If last year's US Open showed him as brattish and foul-mouthed, Wimbledon has
shown the 21-year-old as a maturing, considerate and, yes, fierce, talented and
gutsy sporting professional.
As his coach, former Australian Davis Cup player Jason Stoltenberg says:
"He's just a fighter at heart and he doesn't like to lose. If he goes out
and loses, you know he's given everything and that's a good thing."
Armed with the best wishes from sports-mad Prime Minister John Howard, Hewitt
appears to be the natural successor to Pat Cash, Australia's last Wimbledon
hero, 15 years ago, and his mate and mentor, the two-time runner-up, Pat Rafter.
Members of the close-knit tennis circuit say Hewitt has become more relaxed as
his two-and-a-half-year relationship has developed with girlfriend Kim Clijsters,
the Belgian tennis star.
Even the British press, still smarting after the loss of their poster boy, Tim
Henman, yesterday praised Hewitt's talent and changed attitude.
The Sunday Times' tennis writer, Richard Evans, said: "Hewitt is getting
nicer and he's getting better, which is great for the game and terrifying for
his opponents."
Privately, his detractors say Hewitt has only been well behaved over the past
two weeks because he has been winning. And that fist-punching and
crowd-pointing, often to mates in the crowd, such as professional fan Warren
"Woz" Livingstone, are the benign expressions of the raging,
foul-mouthed punk just below the surface.
But others, including many of tennis' old and respected guard, are ready to
forgive. Veteran US broadcaster and columnist Bud Collins told The Age:
"He's matured, he's maturing a lot. I think everybody deserves a second
chance. He's great for the game. He's a wonderful player. It's going to take
something to dislodge him."
For his legion of fans, led by Mr Livingstone, Hewitt can do no wrong.
When the tennis ace pumps his fist to his chest and points to the crowd after a
big point, it is often to Mr Livingstone and his crew, the Fanatics. It's a
signal developed during Davis Cup campaigns and simply means "just
guts", said Mr Livingstone.
He argues that Hewitt's bad relations with parts of the media and tennis
establishment were a function of age. "Imagine if they printed everything
you said when you were 21 years old," he said.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
theage.com.au
Hewitt still a novice in grasscourt game
By Linda Pearce
July 8 2002
For all that Lleyton Hewitt has already achieved, including a US Open title, his
status as history's youngest year-end No.1, and a place in his first Wimbledon
final, it may further concern his rivals to learn that the 20-year-old is
considered by past Australian greats as a grasscourt work-in-progress.
Three-time Wimbledon champion John Newcombe said before the tournament began
that the key to a Hewitt victory was a more aggressive style of play.
That was rarely needed in the preliminaries to the final, played overnight,
Melbourne time, against Argentinian David Nalbandian, for the only two sets the
top seed dropped en route were in his quarter-final against Sjeng Schalken.
"You could see him start to come to the net and loosen up a bit after the
first set against (Tim) Henman, but he's not convinced yet," Newcombe said.
"That's the next dimension to his game and that's a little bit frightening
to other players, that he has another dimension that he can take his game to, on
grass or any surface."
Fred Stolle, the three-time Wimbledon singles finalist and twice doubles
champion, concurred. "Lleyton can still get a lot better on grass, once he
learns to get in and serve and volley a little bit more, and I think he will do
that in the next couple of years," Stolle said.
Fellow South Australian and Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald also sees room for
improvement, predicting a long career at the top for the baseliner, who had
never passed the Wimbledon fourth round before becoming Australia's third
consecutive men's singles finalist.
"It's a pretty scary thought, really, but he can get better in a couple of
areas, so therefore if he doesn't get a major injury then there's no reason why
he can't win several major championships," Fitzgerald said. "I think
he has a chance of winning all four."
Only five players have managed this and Andre Agassi was the most recent, in
1999.
Agassi was a child prodigy and Hewitt a teenage variant on the theme, despite
some early doubts, his determination and thirst for competition would be enough
to compensate for his lack of size and strength at the highest level.
So, regardless of last night's result, has he already exceeded Fitzgerald's
expectations? "Let me put it this way: he surprises me every time he goes
on the court," the multiple Wimbledon doubles champion said.
"For me my biggest memory was Brazil (in last year's Davis Cup, when Hewitt
was unbeaten in three matches on clay against Gustavo Kuerten's team).
"What he did there I'll never, ever, forget it, and to be able to do that
under that sort of pressure in that environment, I found that incredible. So he
keeps surprising me, every day."
Nalbandian, too, was the least likely of opponents. The 28th seed and other half
of the youngest Wimbledon final of the open era was playing in his first senior
grand slam event.
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theage.com.au
Hewitt poised to cash in
By Linda Pearce
London
July 7 2002
Pat Cash has reigned long and loudly as Australia's last Wimbledon champion, but
today he should prepare to pass the torch. The extraordinary rise of Lleyton
Hewitt suggests that handover is at last imminent, 15 years after Cash clambered
into the players' box at the All England club to celebrate his own famous
victory.
Since 1987, only Pat Rafter has reached a Wimbledon final - or two - but had to
play second fiddle to the record-breaking Pete Sampras and the
who-would-have-thought Goran Ivanisevic.
Hewitt could win the title having played only one top-20 player, but he should
not be judged by the lesser quality of those he has beaten. At 21, and on his
fourth visit here, he has unquestionably been the tournament's outstanding
player.
Although not a natural grasscourter, Hewitt is still a very good one. Former
Davis Cup captain John Newcombe, who first saw Hewitt as a 15-year-old on
Sydney's White City lawns, said yesterday: "It was obvious he could play on
grass then. He had a great return of serve.
"He wasn't afraid of it. He didn't dislike it, and so he adapted his game
to it. He didn't try to say, 'Well, I have to play a different type of game
because I'm playing on grass' and it was obvious he was comfortable out there,
and that it was always going to be very difficult for other players to serve and
volley against him."
Tim Henman was reminded of just that in Friday's 7-5, 6-1, 7-5 semi-final
defeat. Hewitt passes those who approach the net and punishes those who think
they can outrally him.
"It's almost like you've just got to stay at the baseline and give him no
pace to work with," said Henman, who also acknowledged Hewitt's court
speed.
"He's not the most aggressive or the hardest hitter from the baseline. When
you get half an opportunity, you go for it. You either make a mistake or you hit
a winner."
Grass does not intimidate Hewitt, and Martina Navratilova makes the point that
the lack of great volleyers allows players to stay back with little fear of
being punished. The slower courts and balls have also been in Hewitt's favour
this year.
"Lleyton's a great counter-puncher and he does like a bit of pace,"
said Davis Cup coach Wally Masur. "So it doesn't matter how hard you serve
at him, if there's a reasonably true bounce it doesn't bother him. He doesn't
mind the ball coming on at all."
Hewitt, who is an Adelaide Crows' fanatic, planned to spend his rest day on the
Internet following the scores from Football Park. He also intended to practise
and to "chill out", while David Nalbandian and the medically suspect
Xavier Malisse resumed their semi-final.
"I feel like I'm hitting the ball well enough just to go out there and
worry about my game at the moment," Hewitt said, claiming to have seen
little of Malisse or Nalbandian so far. But have no doubt that he will find out.
Such is the nature of the beast. Yet the fact that this is a tournament he is
expected to win has not been without its pitfalls.
Masur knew as Hewitt's forehand collapsed when on the verge of a quick victory
against Sjeng Schalken, and then when he needed two attempts to serve out the
match against Henman, that the tension had begun to build.
"He was obviously aware of the situation in the bottom half of the
draw," Masur said. "If Sampras was waiting, for example, or Rafter or
someone, he would be finishing those matches off snappily. So he's aware of how
momentous it is because the opportunity's there."
The fact that it was knocking so loudly was also playing on Henman's mind, and
the semi could well have been a de facto final.
Certainly, Hewitt played as if it was, in a performance reminiscent of his
second last match against Yevgeny Kafelnikov at last year's US Open, which
followed a testing five-set battle against Andy Roddick in the quarters.
"He was in a zone out there against Henman, just like at the US Open, and I
think if he keeps that up for one more match, I don't think he can be
stopped," said Newcombe.
And so, at 21, the sport's youngest-ever world champion today has the chance for
a second grand slam title. Could he eventually become one of the greats?
"I believe so," said his coach, Jason Stoltenberg. "You've got to
get a lot of luck and a lot of things have got to fall his way, and he's got a
long way to go. He's only got one grand slam, but it's a start."
Shades of
Tiger as Hewitt shows he can reign supreme
Nalbandian crushed between the showers as Australian's confidence, balance and
timing prove him to be world's best
James Lawton at Wimbledon
08 July 2002
In the graceless, unforgiving language of modern sport it might be said that
David Nalbandian, aged 20, "choked". But then history is likely to
take a kindly view of this setback at the end of two of the most extraordinary
weeks that Wimbledon, the old storehouse of legend, has ever known.
Certainly it is true that if Nalbandian is driven back into the obscurity out of
which he leaped from Cordoba, Argentina, into the final of the greatest
tournament in tennis, he can reflect that he wasn't simply caught in a mere
treacherous current of the game he invaded so surprisingly. What did him in,
surely, was a one-man tide of the future.
Lleyton Hewitt from Adelaide is just a year older than the man he crushed so
relentlessly between the showers yesterday, but the game he plays looks as if
has been drawn from the ages and packaged into a force which can dominate the
courts of the world – all of them, fast, slow, whatever pace you care to set
– for a good 10 years.
It is a game which wore down the last of Nalbandian's previously stunning
resolve in less two hours – by 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 – and though it is undramatic
in some ways, lacking, for example the thunder of Boris Becker or the sustained
and riotous aggression of John McEnroe, it has a component which has always
separated the great ones from those who are required to labour in their wake.
At the core of it is the soaring confidence that comes when you know you are so
much better balanced, than the man across the net or the ring or standing beside
you on the first tee of a great tournament. Hewitt has the balance and the
timing of a sporting god, no question. It is an asset which has a relentlessly
dispiriting effect on the resistance of the opposition. Britain's hero, Tim
Henman, was overwhelmed by it in the semi-final and yesterday Nalbandian found
it squeezing the life out of him from the first exchanges.
Hewitt confessed to just one point of "tightening". It came when he
was serving for his second Grand Slam title to place alongside the US Open he
won last year. "Yes, I felt tight when I thought of what this tournament
meant to me, and how long it had been since Pat Cash had won it for Australia
the last time." Hewitt served a double fault, but his agony was brief as
Nalbandian committed another of a shoal of unforced errors and drove the ball
long. Hewitt fell back into what looked like a stupor of relief, but soon enough
he was marching up to the stands in the fashion of Cash and embracing his
parents, the Aussie rules footballer Glynn and physical education teacher
Cherilyn. "I was trying to take it all in," he recalled later,
"but as I was sitting on the chair I thought, 'stuff it, I'll do what Pat
Cash did'." In fact, it was clear enough, he had done rather more than his
compatriot.
Cash battled to win a title against expectation. Hewitt rode the powerful sense
that he was installing a new era of the game, one in which his sheer speed and
adaptability suggest an ability to shape so many situations into the basis for
new victories. He spoke briefly but eloquently about his seizing of a currently
unchallenged status as the world's No 1 player. "When I came to Wimbledon
the first time," he said, "I was trying to mix it up. I think I was
playing the wrong type of game, coming to the net, chip-charging, this kind of
thing. It just wasn't working. I went back and thought about it.
"I said, 'the guys have got to play extremely well to beat me from the back
of the court'. I returned well, used my passing shot, my strengths as my edge,
my quickness around the court. That's the way my mind began to work. I was going
to be my own player, and I knew my serve could get me out of trouble."
Against such boldness of conviction, the unlikely dream of David Nalbandian fell
apart, but in the man from Cordoba there had also been been plenty of evidence
of the force that can come when a young player of extraordinary ability has the
courage to play to his limits. "I've had some great days and I've done my
best, but I know now what is required to beat somebody like Lleyton Hewitt. He
is a great talent, and it will take a lot of work to get to his level,"
Nalbandian said.
Precisely what Hewitt's level is will, of course, take another year or two to
establish. But the prospects are daunting. He is a curious mix of bravado and
shyness – in many ways a Bjorn Borg with a McEnroe inside screaming to break
out. The technical view is that he has much of the talent of Andre Agassi, but
ultimately will prove harder to beat because he is naturally less of a
risk-taker as he drops back to the baseline.
What is stunning is his capacity to pick a moment of vulnerability in an
opponent and go for a shot which demands the ultimate precision of a marksman.
It breaks a pattern of play, a tight rally, with shattering force and repeatedly
he brought it to bear on the fragile pysche of Nalbandian.
There was in it the sense of a masterful competitor familiar to anyone who has
seen Tiger Woods take hold of a golf tournament, not necessarily with the
boldness of his play but with the absolute confidence with which he lays down a
strategy and plays to it with the unbreakable belief that it is within his
powers of execution.
Hewitt may never exert such control over his game, but there were times
yesterday when the comparison was inevitable. It flowed from the conviction of a
young sportsman announcing precisely why he was the best in the world, It was in
the certainty that comes when you know that nature, and the force of your own
ambition, has given you an unbeatable edge.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Hewitt confirms changing of the guard
By John Roberts at Wimbledon
08 July 2002
Having cleared "Henman Hill", Lleyton Hewitt yesterday skipped up Pat
Cash Creek, which now has steps in place of the heads Cashy clambered over in
1987. Hewitt was entitled to take this route. The 21-year-old from Adelaide not
only became the first Australian men's singles champion here for 15 years, but
he also saved the crowd from the spectacle of Cash wearing one of Sue Barker's
tennis dresses, a sight possibly worse than the male streaker who hurdled the
net yesterday.
Hewitt's final hurdle was David Nalbandian, a 20-year-old Argentinian competing
in his first senior grass court tournament and finding himself on Centre Court
as though stepping with Alice through the looking glass. He coped as well as he
was able, but Hewitt, the master of the situation, won 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 after one
hour and 56 minutes.
It was an unusual climax to the tournament. Wimbledon patrons are not accustomed
to watching two men duel from the baseline for the most prestigious title in the
sport. Yesterday the birthplace of serve and volley came close to replicating
Roland Garros in Paris, where scrapping for points in lengthy rallies on slow
clay courts is the norm.
For years, there have been complaints that Wimbledon's grass courts favoured the
big servers and had fallen victim to the modern power game restricted to one,
two, or three-shot points. Yesterday we were treated to a sample of the
alternative as Hewitt and Nalbandian traded shots chiefly from the back of the
court, relying on angles and the depth of strokes to out-manoeuvre each other.
Whether that is preferable or not is in the eye of the beholder. What seems
certain is that we shall be seeing a lot more of Hewitt, who demonstrated why he
is the world No 1 from the start of the tournament to the finish, surviving one
major crisis in the quarter-finals, where he held four match points against
Sjeng Schalken in the third set and eventually squeaked through in the fifth
set, 7-5.
Hewitt may not be everybody's can of XXXX, but his brash, bouncy style has
refreshed the men's game as it goes through the latest changing of the guard,
with Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, standard bearers throughout the 1990s,
attempting to hold back the years.
Significantly, Hewitt is the first counter-puncher to win the title since Agassi,
10 years ago, withstood Goran Ivanisevic's blistering serve and triumphed in a
heart-stopping fifth set. Hewitt did not have to weather an Ivanisevic-type
blitz yesterday, but had to outwit a comparative novice whose real achievement
was in representing his country in the men's singles final for the first time
and showing the whole of Latin America and Europe that clay-court skills can be
translated to any surface.
A recurring debate during the fortnight concerned the pace of Centre Court, a
subject which had provoked comment from several players, including Sweden's
Jonas Bjorkman, who said it was slow enough to be a clay court, and Tim Henman,
who did not go that far but would have preferred a slicker surface.
The combination of a relatively dry spring and the introduction of rye-grass in
the mix appeared to produce the higher bounce of the ball usually to be found on
medium- pace concrete courts. That did not save some big-name hard-court players
from disappearing early, but in Nalbandian's case, grass was grass.
Breaking with tradition, the All England Club allowed the Argentinian world No
32 half an hour to practise on Centre Court yesterday morning before he competed
in his first match in tennis's hallowed arena. When the match started, however,
it seemed that Nalbandian's brief preview had left him even more in awe of the
place.
Hewitt, treating the lawn as if he had inherited it by beating Tim Henman, moved
swiftly into his smooth-running stride, breaking his nervous opponent in the
first and third games. Nalbandian managed to loosen up sufficiently to hold
serve for 1-4 and threatened Hewitt's serve in the next game.
The Australian played his way out of trouble, and signs of stress returned to
Nalbandian's face, framed by the straggly makings of a beard, as the Argentinian
struggled throughout the seventh game, double-faulting to lose the set after 33
minutes. During that time, Hewitt had converted three of 10 break opportunities,
and was eager to improve the ratio of success.
Rain delayed play for 10 minutes after Hewitt held serve in the opening game of
the second set, time enough for the streaker interlude before play resumed with
Hewitt breaking for 2-0. At this point it seemed that Nalbandian would do well
to avoid total humiliation, but he was able to recover the break in the next
game with an impressive backhand lob-volley after an exhilarating exchange of
lobs and smashes.
After a second rain delay, this time lasting 33 minutes, Nalbandian, serving at
3-4, was passed by a forehand drive to 15-40 and netted a forehand on break
point. Hewitt served out the set to 30, finishing with an ace. Both players
saved break points early in the third set, Nalbandian again the first to lose
his serve, passed by Hewitt's backhand drive down the line for 2-1.
The game Argentinian fought back, winning a rally with a backhand drive to level
at 2-2. That was Nalbandian's last act of defiance. He was broken in the next
game and then double-faulted twice to lose the seventh game. Hewitt, serving for
the match, double-faulted at 40-0, but made amends by luring Nalbandian into
hitting a forehand long. Hewitt fell backwards in celebration before picking
himself up and heading for Pat Cash Creek.
"I can remember being at my grandparents' house when I was six, watching
the Pat Cash match," he said. "For me it was a huge thing to see an
Australian win such a big tournament. I hope every kid playing in their local
club in Australia will realise you can dream, and if you put in a lot of hard
work, your dream is not out of reach." Hewitt had an advantage, of course.
He plays like a dream.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Hewitt graduates with adversity degree
World No 1 has the single-minded intensity of a Connors and McEnroe says he is
the fastest player he has ever seen
By Andrew Longmore
07 July 2002
It would seem that a 21-year-old's world could not be more complete. US Open
champion, world No 1, Wimbledon champion in all but gold etching on the
champions' board. "Unbelievable," says Lleyton Hewitt. "I don't
know what to say."
Just one dark cloud shrouds the skies above the young Australian. His beloved
Adelaide Crows are struggling in the Australian Football League and, even worse,
Port Adelaide, their arch rivals, are top of their league, which makes
conversation with his travelling schoolmate, Hayden Eckermann, and Roger Rashid,
coach, television journalist and fellow Adelaidian, rather more spicy than he
would like. "Footie", Australian Rules, the sport of his father,
remains Hewitt's great sporting love outside the confines of the tennis court.
The Hewitt family live barely a punt away from Football Park in the suburbs of
Adelaide and there are plans afoot, forgive the pun, to parade the new Wimbledon
champion in front of the crowd at the Crows' next home game. Only the little
matter of his first Wimbledon final against David Nalbandian this afternoon
stands between Hewitt and an unconditional acceptance of his status as the best
player in the world.
Acceptance? In his homeland, Hewitt has struggled to win hearts. Aussies like a
winner, but brashness is heavily punished. Early jousts with his public induced
the sense that little Lleyton needed to be pulled down a peg or two. Tall-poppy
syndrome, the Australians call it, though his presence on court is still more of
overgrown schoolboy than fully matured male. "Lleyton has never minded who
he upset," says Rashid, who was once summoned by the veteran Adelaide-based
coach Peter Smith to watch a fresh-faced 13-year-old and has been watching ever
since. "As a young kid, when he was facing a guy several years older who
thought it might be smart to give a bit of mouth, Lleyton would give it back.
His mentality has always been: 'I'll get you'. That's what happened against
Henman. 'This is feeding me, please give me more'."
Hewitt's outbursts, though, have been spectacularly immature, the flip side of a
tendency to open his mouth before engaging the brain. In the second round of the
US Open, against the black American James Blake and in front of a black line
judge, Hewitt's frustration launched him into dangerous waters. "Look at
him," he bellowed at the umpire, pointing at Blake and then the offending
official. "Now look at him. What do you see?"
Blake, a gentle giant of a man, let Hewitt off an extremely sharp hook later,
but the black American press were less forgiving. What happened next, though,
revealed the core of a competitor. Having survived a brutal five-setter against
Andy Roddick, the all-American favourite, Hewitt destroyed Yevgeny Kafelnikov
and Pete Sampras to take the title. As a demonstration of pure single-minded
two-fingered intensity, this was pure Connors.
So, rewind to the tie-break against Sjeng Schalken on Thursday afternoon, Court
One. For the first time, Hewitt is beginning to look vulnerable against the
raking grounstrokes of the languid Dutchman. He has already forfeited four match
points when an overrule on a baseline call gives Schalken a significant
advantage. Hewitt's instant reaction is explosive, but somewhere between the
baseline and the umpire's chair, he recovers his senses. The conversation with
the umpire betrays his frustration, but never descends into abuse. But, for the
next two sets, the Australian is a shadow of a No 1 as if his self-imposed
tranquility has spilled over into his tennis.
Those close to Hewitt – and they are an exclusive crew – point to a new
maturity which has accompanied his swift rise to Grand Slam champion and
youngest world No 1. But the larrikin in Hewitt is not far below the surface.
Connors never fully matured and nor will Hewitt, but anyone who witnessed his
dissection of Tim Henman on Centre Court on Friday will never again question his
claim to be the natural successor to the mantle previously worn by Connors and
Andre Agassi.
"Andre is more of a punisher on the baseline," says Brad Gilbert,
Agassi's former coach. "Lleyton's not like that. What you do know is that
Lleyton is going to bring the kitchen sink with him on to court." Gilbert's
favourite Hewitt point comes from the closing moments of the Schalken match. The
Dutchman double- guesses a backhand volley, Hewitt has anticipated the move and
waits to return, but when Schalken sweeps another volley across court, Hewitt
has scuttled across court and is ready to make the pass. "There were
Lleyton's two greatest assets, right there," added Gilbert. "His heart
and his feet." John McEnroe, who spent a lifetime combating Bjorn Borg's
speed, thinks Hewitt is the quickest player he has ever seen.
But it is the attitude which makes the man. Hewitt thrives on adversity. Davis
Cup victories over Alex Corretja in Barcelona and Gustavo Kuerten in the
Brazilian's home town of Florianopolis are the prime reference points on his
motivational compass. At the time, Kuerten was the No 1 player in the world.
Hewitt won in three sets on clay.
"That was a real turning point," says Rashid. "He was heavier off
the forehand side, he was hitting clear forehand winners that day. But he is
also smart on court, he has good court management and a good rapport system. On
court, he'll be able to tell you exactly where his friends are, not just in the
players' box, but maybe where Wally Masur and John Fitzgerald are, maybe where I
am and he uses them to hone in on. You could unfurl big banners for Tim Henman
and he wouldn't notice. He couldn't tell you what was going on."
Hewitt's gestures, punching the air, pointing towards his supporters, are
essential to his wellbeing on court, but they have not endeared the Australian
to his peers. Corretja, who objects to Hewitt's frequent self-chastisement, has
refused to speak to him since the Davis Cup final. But isolation is the
companion of the champion, and it is a state Hewitt can live with as long as he
can rely on the mateship of Hayden Eckermann, now a permanent member of Hewitt's
entourage.
A switch of coach, from Darren Cahill to Jason Stoltenberg, was messily handled
last year, heightening the antagonism of the local press, who were dismissed
from the gates of Hewitt's family home, where he still lives upstairs in a
converted flat. But no one could question Hewitt's fluency in the interview room
or the court this past two weeks. Rashid believes his best tennis is still a
couple of years away, a prospect to disturb the dreams of Tim Henman and David
Nalbandian.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Masur warns Hewitt against burn-out
| Sports Watch ... 07 July 2002 |
Lleyton Hewitt must guard against burn out, says Australian Davis Cup coach
Wally Masur.
Hewitt's determination to chase down every point has propelled him to the US
Open title, the world No.1 ranking and into the Wimbledon men's final.
But it could also lead to his tennis career stalling or ending prematurely
unless he was wary and heeded the right advice, Masur said.
"He's so dynamic and players like that tend to get injured," Masur
said.
"He's very young and he's had a few things obviously. That's always a
possibility. Anyone who throws themselves around like that, problems can
arise."
But he said 21-year-old Hewitt's relatively small and light 180cm tall, 68kg
frame would be to his advantage, along with the expertise in his travelling
entourage.
"He's got a light frame and that helps. Big guys tend to take a bit of a
pounding," Masur said.
"He's very fluid, he's a great natural athlete.
"He's got good people around him. He travels with a physio and a fitness
trainer and I think they're doing their best to safeguard his longevity."
Hewitt's first Wimbledon final fell on the 50th anniversary of Australian legend
Frank Sedgman's win.
Sedgman believes Hewitt has yet to reach his peak, and also fears for his
potential to burn out.
"I think he still needs to refine his game a bit and I hope he remains
injury-free," Sedgman told British newspaper The Independent.
"I admire the way he's a real go-getter. He's got a lot of heart and he's
certainly got the determination to succeed."
Three-times Wimbledon champion Boris Becker drew comparisons between Hewitt and
Bjorn Borg, who won the championships in five consecutive years from 1976 to
1980.
"He reminds me of Bjorn Borg, the way he plays, the way he wills himself to
win and the way he falls to his knees and turns to his family and friends in the
players' box," Becker wrote in The Times.
"He knows where he is now on centre court and that is such an advantage.
Under normal conditions he will be champion, but your first Wimbledon final is
not a normal condition. This is sport, this is magic."
Cash: Hewitt a worthy champ
Copyright © 2002 Nando Media
Copyright © 2002 Agence France-Presse
LONDON (AFP) - Former title holder Pat Cash on Sunday hailed fellow Aussie
Lleyton Hewitt as a worthy Wimbledon champion.
Top-seeded Hewitt overpowered Argentinian outsider David Nalbandian 6-1, 6-3,
6-2 on Centre Court to claim his first men's singles title at the All England
Club.
Cash, the last Australian to win the title in 1987, admitted that his countryman
was in a class of his own over the past fortnight.
"There's no doubt about it. He was the only guy out there who is the worthy
champion," Cash told the BBC.
"Sampras (Pete) is on the way down, and Agassi (Andre) didn't get through,
and other than that there isn't anybody who deserves to win that trophy.
"He (Hewitt) was the toughest player and the best all-around player he
could be. It was faultless really.
"Lleyton was his usual ruthless self. That was the title he really wanted
to get and nothing was going to get in his way."
And Cash said that 21-year-old Hewitt, the reigning U.S. Open champion, had some
of the best years ahead of him.
"There's more Grand Slams in him. How many is anybody's guess," said
Cash.
"It's kind of sad that he's got a couple of weeks before he's back playing
tournaments. He's going to be exhausted. You look forward to a rest but he won't
have much of a chance.
"I still think that when it comes down to the U.S. Open he will find
himself fired up," said Cash.
Cash said that he was disappointed by 20-year-old Nalbandian's display, but
admitted that an exhausting fortnight had taken its toll on the Wimbledon
novice.
"I suppose it was a bit dull for us watching and the crowd tried to get
Nalbandian back in the match, but he didn't have anything in the tank,"
said Cash.
"Not having a day off and not being able to recover is really tough for
him. I expected him to play better than he did. He probably played two-thirds as
well as he could play.
"He needed to start pretty well and drop into a rhythm, and whether it was
nerves or not he didn't have a rhythm.
"He did break serve a couple of times and it looked like we had a match,
but he couldn't get going."
BBC
Sunday, 7 July, 2002, 15:19 GMT 16:19 UK
Wimbledon uncovered
By Matt Slater
BBC Sport Online streaker editor
They might be lightning fast at covering the All England club's playing surfaces
when it rains, but Wimbledon's streaker-response time is far less impressive.
All fortnight we have admired the sleek efficiency of Wimbledon's well-oiled
rain drill - a few spots of the wet stuff, the umpire suspends play, the net
comes down and 20 green-clad man sprint across the court dragging a tarpaulin
behind them.
Total cover in about five seconds.
This efficiency, sadly (or happily, depending on your view of these things),
does not extend to covering naked intruders.
With men's finalists Lleyton Hewitt and David Nalbandian just back on court
after a 15-minute rain delay, one bored spectator (it was getting a bit
one-sided) decided to play his very own Centre Court exhibition match.
Wearing only a broad smile, the twinkle-toed naturist made light of the cool
temperature (well, that's his excuse) and cavorted around the court for nearly a
minute.
He even hurdled the net twice - demonstrating ably why we should never allow
Olympic athletes to perform naked again, as they did in classical times.
As divertingly different as this all was, the biggest eye-opener was the sight
of Wimbledon's security staff attempting to cover the frolicking nude with large
red capes - it simply cried out for shouts of 'Ole!' from the crowd.
And it is not as if they haven't had to deal with this kind of brazen cheekiness
before.
As BBC commentator John Barrett pointed out, a streaker also interrupted the
1996 men's final between Malivai Washington and Richard Krajicek.
But then as commentary box buddy John Lloyd explained, "That was a better
sight, that was a female."
Well, quite, but Hewitt's consort Kim Clijsters wasn't complaining - SW19 has
rarely seen the Belgian so animated.
Missed tackle
So was it just another example of the eccentricity the world expects from
Wimbledon week (like playing tennis outdoors in an English summer)?
Absolutely, but there was one man who didn't look pleased by Wimbledon's
experiment with avant-garde contemporary dance...referee Alan Mills.
The grumpy kill-joy had a face worse than thunder while watching his bumbling
staff reprise a Keystone Cops routine.
As the Beeb's Barrett said: "Poor old Alan, he just didn't know how to
tackle him."
Rather you than me, Alan.
Hewitt
the Ripper: Lleyton dominates
7/7/02 5:44 PM
By Matthew Cronin
If Lleyton Hewitt was impressive in pouncing on Pete Sampras to win his first
Grand Slam title at the 2001 U.S. Open, his ethereal play in his crushing of
Argentina's David Nalbandian in the 2002 Wimbledon final on Sunday brings to
mind another adjective -- dominant.
"It's a real ripper," Hewitt said of his Wimbledon trophy.
In outplaying Nalbandian in every aspect of the game, Hewitt became the first
aggressive baseliner since Andre Agassi 10 years ago to win the Wimbledon crown.
The decade long rule by serve-and-volleyers Pete Sampras, Richard Krajicek and
Goran Ivanisevic is now put to rest and a look at the past five Grand Slam
winners indicates that just having a big bomb of a serve is no longer good
enough to get it done in the newfangled world of all-court tennis. That group is
composed of Hewitt, a super-quick wall of a competitor who is able to end points
both from the back and at the net; '02 Aussie titlist Thomas Johansson, who
doesn't have a big weapon but is solid everywhere; and '02 Roland Garros titlist
Albert Costa, he of the huge groundies, thick legs and a newfound confidence
closing points at the net.
"If you return well and you stay aggressive from the back of the court and
you pass well, then I don't think there's any reason why the baseliners
shouldn't do that well at Wimbledon," Hewitt said early this week. "A
guy like Agassi was able to do it and I can draw confidence from watching a guy
like him chop up a lot of good serve-and-volleyers."
By winning Wimbledon, the 21-year-old Hewitt did what only Sampras has been able
to do at the hallowed lawns of the All-England Club the past decade -- win the
event convincingly while coming into the fortnight as heavy favorite. Never one
to fold under pressure, Hewitt was locked in form the
time that he arrived at SW 19, speaking with the air of a champion and confident
that he could put down any style of challenger. His one big scare came in the
quarterfinals against zoning Dutchman Sjeng Schalken, but when push came to
shove deep in the fifth set, it was Hewitt who was able to
sprint the extra step and come up with a crowd- dizzying big shot.
Hewitt isn't the first whippersnapper to rule on the lawns, but the No. 1 is the
first 21-year-old in a long time to dominate the tour with an all-around game.
You would have to go back to former Swedish great Mats Wilander's amazing days
in the 1980s in Melbourne, Paris and New York to recall a player with a slight
build and no overwhelming weapon -- save for heart and guile -- who was the
clear cut favorite for a long stretch of time.
Since racing past Sampras last September, Hewitt has been on an amazing run. A
remarkably focused competitor with one of the world's most effective returns of
serves, Hewitt ended '01 as the youngest player to finish ranked No. 1 in the
ATP history at the age of 20 by virtue of taking the year-end Masters Cup in
Sydney.
But instead of starting '02 with a bang and winning the Aussie Open, the
5-foot-11, 150-pounder fell victim to the chicken pox and was upset the first
round. Bedridden, he was unable to lead his team in Davis Cup against Argentina,
developments that upset him.To complicate matter even further, he was trying out
a new coach, Aussie Jason Stoltenberg, whom her hired in the off-season after
his coach of four years, Darren Cahill, resigned (Cahill is now coaching Andre
Agassi).
But in his first tournament back in February in San Jose, Hewitt outfought
Agassi for the title. Two weeks later, he scalded Tim Henman for the masters
Series Indian Wells crown. The boy had become a man.
Agassi paid him an ultimate set of compliments. "He's a great competitor,
his game is consistent and when he's down he's plays big situations aggressively
and takes control of the point," Agassi said. "That's the sign of
somebody who's ready for big moments. He has great skill and is earning his
place with the best of us."
Hewitt had a respectable clay court season, losing a tight fourth round sweat
fest to Guillermo Canas at Roland Garros. Then he took the fast train to London
and once his toes touched the grass blades, he never left the center of the
fairway. He won his third straight title at Queens by dissecting Henman and
despite catching a flu in Rosmalen the next week, entered Wimbledon as focused
as he has ever been, elbowing his way past the tough Jonas Bjorkman in the first
round in straight sets and then not dropping a set in his next three matches
against Greg Carraz, Julian Knowle and Mikhail Youzhny. After overcoming
Schalken, he then quickly extinguished Tim-bledon (England's Tim Henman ) in the
semis and then blew out Nalbandian.
Hewitt is so far ahead in the rankings right now that it would be a near miracle
for someone to pull ahead of him by October.Almost assuredly, he will enter the
U.S. Open ranked No. 1 and if he continues to improve his serve and play around
the net, he will be the overwhelming favorite to repeat as champion.
For a guy who once a dreamy-eyed kid who job it was to serve orange juice to the
Aussie Davis Cup team, that's not a bad position to be in.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Borg, Connors, Agassi and now Hewitt: The baseline is back
7/7/02 10:11 PM
By STEVE WILSTEIN
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) _ A fizzle in the drizzle. A Wimbledon final hackers
could appreciate and only the most loyal fans could love.
It had as much tension as a snapped string. As much excitement as teatime.
The loudest cheer came for a man who somersaulted naked over the net. At least
he provided comic relief. Not that anyone expected anything more.
Lleyton Hewitt was No. 1 coming in and he's No. 1 going out, brandishing his
first Wimbledon trophy Sunday after a 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 drubbing of 20-year-old
David Nalbandian, an endearing but overwhelmed Argentine making his debut on
Centre Court.
If there was little to savor in this sloppy affair, it at least provided a
welcome change from the fusillade of aces that ring out most other years.
Pete Sampras sometimes served more aces in two games than the seven Hewitt and
Nalbandian produced in three sets. On the other hand, they hit more
groundstrokes in one rally than Sampras did in a whole match. To the typical
weekend player, this felt a little more familiar.
Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi and now Hewitt are the only men to win
Wimbledon from the baseline in the Open era. The only ones, really, since Bill
Tilden back in 1930.
This final was the first between two baseliners since Borg beat Connors two
straight years, 1977 and 1978.
The baseline game may be back on Centre Court. But for how long?
History suggests that Hewitt's title run this year is more an anomaly than a
portent for the future. Consider the trend: Connors in 1982, Agassi in 1992,
Hewitt in 2002. Once every 10 years. Not a baseliner in between.
The reason is simple. Grass, where the ball skids low and fast, favors the big
serve-and-volleyer. Always will.
Winning from the backcourt takes a rare combination of sharp returns and steady
groundstrokes. It takes intelligence and swift legs, canny anticipation and the
endurance to chase balls all over the court.
Most of all it takes patience and guts, a willingness to stand 10 yards from the
net when the opponent is rushing in, trying to win with the power of passing
shots or the finesse of drops and lobs.
Agassi stands his ground in the center of the baseline and controls points with
flat, crushing groundstrokes from side to side, winning as much by wearing
players down as by whipping shots past them. He's not as fast afoot as the other
baseliners, but he seems to know where all the balls are going and usually gets
there in time. No one has had quicker reflexes on returns or has taken shots
earlier on the hop.
Connors also hit flat groundstrokes, his shots clearing the net by the smallest
of margins in a way that thrilled the crowds. He was the best returner of his
era, but he wasn't content to stay back all the time. He liked to press the
attack, taking short balls or groundstrokes on the fly while moving forward.
Hewitt is more like Borg, counterpunching rather than dictating the terms of a
rally.
``He's Borg with less spin,'' Brian Gottfried, one of the top pros of the 1970s,
said as he watched at Wimbledon.
Borg, who won Wimbledon five straight years from 1976 to 1980, was the baseliner
supreme who hit with the heaviest topspin, his shots arcing five feet over the
net, biting and kicking up. But Borg also learned to transform his game on
grass, to play a more serve-and-volley style his last few years.
Hewitt could do the same. He's a lightweight at 150 pounds, but he can serve at
more than 120 mph. He knows how to hit the approach and how to volley. At 21,
with trophies from last year's U.S. Open and now Wimbledon, he's still a work in
progress.
``When I first came on ... I was actually trying to mix it up,'' he said. ``I
think I was playing the wrong style of game _ come to the net, chip-charge, that
kind of stuff. It wasn't working. I went back. I said, 'The guys have got to
play extremely well if they're going to beat me from the back of the court.' I
returned well, used my passing shot, my quickness.''
Though Australians in the past grew up playing and loving grass, Hewitt was best
on hardcourts. But the more he worked on his serve, the more he found he could
win on grass. The past three years, he won the Wimbledon warmup at Queens.
``My serve has got me out of a lot of trouble the last few years in big
tournaments,'' he said. ``When you start winning Queens a few years in a row ...
then you start realizing you're a real contender for the big one a couple of
weeks down the track.''
Still, it's tough to win Wimbledon year after year from the baseline. This year,
with all the strange upsets, belonged to Hewitt. The future probably still
belongs to the big boys.
Steve Wilstein is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to
him at swilstein(at)ap.org
------------------------------------------------------------------------
LLEYTON SWEEPS TO WIMBLEDON TITLE OVER NALBANDIAN
What's ahead for No. 1 Hewitt
By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net
Fred Mullane
Camerawork USA, Inc.
It's one thing to go into Wimbledon the favorite and it's another to so
thoroughly dominate the field, but that is exactly what the 21-year-old Adelaide
Crow Lleyton Hewitt did, embarrassing England's Tim Henman in the semis and then
wiping out Argentina's David Nalbandian in the final.
The tour hasn't had a dominant 21-year-old in a long time – not Pete Sampras,
who began to peak at age 22, nor Andre Agassi, who played his best tennis in his
late 20s. Jim Courier and his Aussie Open through Roland Garros runs comes to
mind. Both he and Lleyton are nail-tough competitors with huge hearts and not
just a little bit of hate brimming underneath their white caps. Courier was a
more powerful player off the ground, but Lleyton is a more accomplished all-courter
who is faster and a much better volleyer.
Hewitt has been the sport's top dog since he won his first U.S. Open crown last
September and it's hard to think of anyone who is in a good enough mental space
to knock him from the top spot this year.
Only Marat Safin appeared to have a fighting chance coming into Wimbledon and he
played so poorly in his loss to giant killer Olivier Rochus and took the defeat
so lightly that it will take heart transplant to get the 2000 U.S. Open champion
spilling his guts again.
Nalbandian showed a lot of game and grit in reaching the final and it's apparent
that he has a solid future in the sport, but he does not have weapons to hit
through Hewitt on hard courts. Agassi is sure to make trouble on the cement this
summer and has a shot at the Open crown, but the 32-year-old dad simply will not
play enough to take over the No. 1 ranking.
THE SLIM FIELD OF CONTENDERS
Who else is left? Not Sampras, who will be fortunate to win a Tier II title this
summer; not Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who seems more motivated playing doubles now;
not Henman, who is Hewitt's prisoner; not Aussie Open champ Thomas Johansson,
who seems destined to be a one-Slam wonder; and certainly not Roger Federer, who
has been the most disappointing Slam performer of the year.
There are a few men who have shown enough spunk this summer to at least earn
themselves a brawl with Lleyton in Flushing Meadows: Guga Kuerten, who's fresh
and put in on the line at Roland Garros despite a lot of rust; '02 French champ
Albert Costa, who now finally believes in himself and is hitting the ball big
enough to dig some holes in asphalt; Wimby semifinalist Xavier Malisse, who
appears to be finally adding bravery to his talent; Roland Garros finalist Juan
Carlos Ferrero, the only notable Spaniard gutsy enough to play Wimbledon; and
Andy Roddick, whose miserable last six weeks will give him plenty of motivation
to step up in the summer.
All these men need to make an impression during the U.S. summer hardcourt season
leading up to the Open, so they can give themselves enough confidence if they
have to face Down Under's favorite back alley brawler.
Give credit to Hewitt's new coach, Jason Stoltenberg, for aiding his stead in
improving his serve and volleys over the past seven months. Hewitt is nearly a
complete player now and although he still could make some minor improvements in
his game, it's very hard to find many holes there. Unless he breaks a leg or
goes on a massive losing streak, the defending U.S. Open champion will go into
Flushing Meadows as a huge favorite, a distinction that few, if any,
21-year-olds have held in the past decade.
Sunday,
July 7
Hewitt was in his element
By Curry Kirkpatrick
ESPN The Magazine
WIMBLEDON, England -- Maybe David Neanderthal or Nebulous or Nalbandian or
whatever his name is should have missed his starting time -- the way he did at
'99 junior Wimbledon when he got disqualified. Or maybe he should have taken off
his tennis whites and put together a jig and a net jump -- the way serial
streaker Mark Roberts did at a rain break before being escorted away. Or maybe
Nalbandian should have paid a few more visits to a Centre Court he'd never seen
except for an emergency practice the morning of the last round of the first
grass court tournament he'd ever played.
Whatever he might have done, as soon as the Unknown Argentine did what he had to
do -- trod the hallowed ground, armed primarily with a sometimes-nasty forehand
and a finely-honed sense of humor -- Lleyton Hewitt, the top seed and No. 1
player in the world, showed him he really didn't belong. Hewitt ruthlessly
drilled the poor fellow as if in a backyard frolic -- and turned the tennis
championship of the world into a 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 laugher.
Nabandian, ranked 32, had won six matches through the Fortnight, whipping Pete
Sampras' conqueror, George Bastl, winning five tie breaks as well as two
character-testing five-setters. But he's a baseliner -- and Hewitt's the best at
that. He's a quick, speedy grinder -- and Hewitt's the best of those.
Nalbandian'd taken advantage of this year's heavier balls, higher bounce and
slower grass -- but the pugnacious Hewitt might have been Brer Rabbit in the
Briar Patch under those conditions.
Before the match was four games old, Nalbandian had exposed his nerves and
inexperience -- or Hewitt had exposed them for him, striking 12 clear winners
(against zero errors) -- and Boris Becker, resplendent in his Rod Stewart retro
ruffled white shirt in the BBC commentating box, was chuckling at the picture on
his monitor of Nalbandian's French girlfriend, Victoria: "But at least that
is a beautiful girlfriend he has."
The beauty of the match was almost all from Hewitt's side -- uncontainable
rockets from along the baseline, especially his lethal inside-out forehand;
depth and weight of shot to all the corners and angles; his vastly improved
serve always there to bail him out of trouble spots. As if there were many of
those. The worst finals spanking at this venue since John McEnroe thrashed Jimmy
Connors 6-2, 6-1, 6-1 in 1984. The match was interrupted twice in the early
going for (surprise!) rain -- but the only real suspense came when Roberts, 37,
made one of his typical naked forays upon a major event just as the two players
were returning from the first delay.
Streakologists will recall 1996 when, just before an equally horrid championship
round mismatch between Richard Krajicek and Mal Washington, a fetching blonde
rushed nude onto Centre Court. This time Roberts -- who has streaked the British
Open at St. Andrews, a soccer final at Glasgow, the Grand National steeplechase
and a snooker match, once with a toy puppy concealing his privates -- did the
honors. "Why not they get him? He out there five minutes," said
Nalbandian later, who nevertheless seemed to, uh, raise his game momentarily,
staying with Hewitt for 12- and 15-shot rallies, making him work for his points,
even poking some winners himself.
But The Kangaroo Kid -- having escaped the dangerous Sjeng Schalken in the
quarters after being down a break twice in the fifth set and then pounding the
home favorite Tim Henman in straights in the semis -- wasn't about to let his
moment slip. "I couldn't wait for Wimbledon to start this year," said
the Adelaide, Australia, native who won the Wimby grass warmup at Queens for the
third year in succession (the first since McEnroe to do that). "It's always
been a big thing for an Australian to win this tournament. I remember Pat (Cash)
15 years ago winning, watching it with my grandmother. His headband, his fire
out there."
Cash also was the first to climb up into the stands to embrace his family and
friends after winning the All England. And Hewitt did that, too. "I
thought, stuff it, I'm going up there," he said.
Not that the new champ, who watches the series of Rocky DVD's for inspiration
and was the youngest player ever to attain the No. 1 ranking last winter,
embraces the public and press as much. Nor the stress of the spotlight. There
was that time a few years ago when he referred to the "stupidity of the
Australian public;" the 2001 French when he labeled an umpire "a
spastic;" the James Blake incident at the U.S. Open when he insinuated a
black linesman was partial to his African-American opponent. An Australian
magazine once rated Hewitt the country's "least admired sportsperson."
And of Hewitt's youthful transgressions -- the in-your-face cockiness, the
arrogance, all those "C'MON'S" -- Agassi's former coach, Brad Gilbert,
once said he'd be "amazed if someone didn't whack him in the locker
room."
But nobody's going to whack Hewitt on court any time soon. He may be an enigma,
preferring to keep to his sporting family -- father Glynn is a former Aussie
Rules Football player, mother Cherilyn is a phys ed teacher, girlfriend Kim
Clijsters from Belgium is among the top 10 players in the world -- rather than
do media interviews or make public appearances. But so what if he'd rather dress
down with his "mates" rather than talk tennis or explore his private
life with some sleaze Fourth Estate. What is he, 12?
Naw, he just looks like a pimply pre-teen, even long after he's cut his
surfer-rat locks into that new, crewcut, bullet-head look. At any rate, he's the
youngest player to win Wimbledon since Becker -- and who's to say Hewitt won't
keep winning here on the grass as long as his lightning-quick, groundstroking,
bard of the baseline predecessor, Bjorn Borg, did?
As for Nalbandian, he was the last wackiest straw in the wackiest Wimbledon
within memory. Neither previous 2001 finalist back in the tournament. Sampras
and Agassi and every other American gone before the fourth round. Three South
Americans in the last eight. Jennifer Capriati's ex-boyfriend advancing a round
further than Jennifer herself. (Not to mention, Xavier Malisse granted a
10-minute reprieve in his losing semifinal to Nalbandian to call his doctor in
Belgium about his heart palpitations; apparently, they weren't over The Capster.)
Anna Kournikova... Uh, just wanted to envision the name one more time.
Through all this chaos, sure enough, came the weirdest story of all, Nalbandian,
just 20, the grandson of an Armenian immigrant to tiny Unquillo, Argentina, in
the high Sierra range just outside Cordoba -- who, just to practice for his
first Wimbledon, had to persuade his club back in Buenos Aires to mark out
tennis court lines on a cricket pitch.
Nalbandian wasn't just the first Argentine this or that -- the great Guillermo
Vilas won four Grand Slam titles but never got past the quarters at the All
England. N-Band was the first man from the South American continent to reach the
final -- after Alex Olmedo, the UCLA Bruin from Peru who won the title here in
1959. And the first from any continent in the open era to make the Wimbledon
championship round in his debut at Wimbledon. (The last five players who won
here in their first visit were all Americans: Bill Tilden, Ellsworth Vines,
Bobby Riggs, Ted Schroeder and Dick Savitt.)
Nalbandian had an impressive junior career, beating Roger Federer in the finals
of the '98 U.S. Open juniors and finishing third in the world. But when he
hooked up with former tour player and countryman Gabriel Markus -- who cherishes
being the only player from his country to beat Sampras -- as his coach last
season, Nalbandian really took off, improving over 200 spots in the rankings (to
No. 47) in 2001 and then winning his first title at Estoril (beating Juan Carlos
Ferrero and Carlos Moya) in 2002.
Hewitt's pedigree, however, trumped his opponent in the same way he ripped his
game asunder on the court. Ken Rosewall won the French at 18, Rod Laver and Lew
Hoad also were champions of majors as infants. But of all twelve Australians who
have triumphed amid the leafy glades of SW 19, Hewitt is the youngest.
"Our sport needs a dominant figure," Becker said. "Lleyton is the
perfect role model to those kids who should know you don't need to be 6-4, 200
pounds to succeed in tennis. The right attitude. The right technique. You can
make it with other stuff. That's his gift."
In 1997, the kid was only 15 years, 11 months, when he became the youngest
qualifier at the Australian Open. Four and a half tennis seasons later he's
already won 16 tournaments -- with many more to come.
Now if the U.S. and Wimbledon champion can only open up to the outside world --
and show an attractive personal side he reveals only in miniature flashes --
Hewitt might win many more thousands of hearts. And in the process maybe even
save an entire sport.
Curry Kirkpatrick is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at
curry.kirkpatrick@espnmag.com.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday, July 7
Aussie men sweep events
Reuters
WIMBLEDON, England -- Lleyton Hewitt's first men's singles title at Wimbledon
was only the start of a day of celebration for the hordes of Australians at the
All England Club.
While Hewitt cruised to 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 victory against Argentine David Nalbandian
on Centre Court, Australian doubles specialist Todd Woodbridge was on court one
winning his seventh men's doubles title -- his first with Swede Jonas Bjorkman.
Later in the day 18-year-old Australian Todd Reid won the boys' singles final
7-6 (5), 6-4 over Lamine Ouahab of Algeria.
All three were cheered on by a large Australian contingent both at courtside and
in front of the giant television screen on the grassy knoll dubbed "Henman
Hill" -- several of their banners calling for it to be renamed "Hewitt
Hill" in honor of their hero.
Hewitt, who draped himself in the Australian flag before parading the trophy,
said the tradition of Australian success at Wimbledon made his victory all the
sweeter.
"We've had so many great players do well here in the past," Hewitt
said. "So it's sort of a place you enjoy coming back to and you look
forward to coming to play."
Woodbridge celebrated his 6-1, 6-2, 6-7 (7), 7-5 victory against Mark Knowles
and Daniel Nestor with Mark Woodforde -- the now retired Australian with whom he
won his previous six men's doubles titles here -- who is here as a television
pundit.
Holding a glass of champagne, Woodbridge, 31, said the success was a boon for
Australian tennis in what could have been a down period.
"The young guys in the junior program have really stepped up to the plate
in the last two majors, and come through with some good results. That's
terrific," he said. "We had thought we didn't have much backup after
I'd retired from singles and Jason Stoltenberg, Richard Fromberg also retired,
Mark Woodforde also.
"Things were a bit lean when you notice we only had four players in the
main draw. For Todd Reid to come through and win, that's a huge boost for junior
tennis in Australia."
Woodbridge said he thought 21-year-old Hewitt, whose success was the 21st for
Australians in the men's singles, had more major titles ahead of him.
"I think he's a four to six Slam winner" he said. "It's just a
matter of keeping fit, the drive and motivation he has. He's just a freak really
in a way. I mean, people like Lleyton come along every 15, 20 years, one person
like that."
Hewitt said he hoped his victory would be a spur to young tennis hopefuls back
in Australia, as Pat Cash's victory in 1987 had been for him.
"I think for every, you know, kid playing in the local club in Australia,
just for them to realize that it is possible. You can, you know, dream," he
said.
"You've still got to put in a lot of hard work and try and get there, but
it is possible. It's not out of your reach.
"For me it was such a huge thing to see an Australian win such a big
tournament. I think that, you know, rubs off a little bit."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
and some tidbits...
Hewitt is the third-youngest to win Wimbledon - only Boris Becker (17) and Bjorn
Borg (20) were younger Wimbledon winners than Hewitt since the advent of the
Open tennis era in 1968.
For the second rain delay in the second set, they stopped play at 30-30, 3-3 at
3.33 pm for 33 minutes, the same time as the length of the first set.
"When he was in primary school he wrote an essay which said 'I'm going to
win Wimbledon', and now he's done it." Max Hewitt, his grandfather.
Hewitt and Clijsters will have a week off in Belgium.
The
Guardian's version of BBC's Gamewatch
Lleyton Hewitt v David Nalbandian: game-by-game
Email whatever guff comes into your head druring the match to dan.rookwood@guardian.co.uk
and during the Robinson's Barley Water breaks you might find they form part of
the report
Dan Rookwood
Sunday July 7, 2002
Lleyton Hewitt wins the Championship in straight sets with a 6-1, 6-3, 6-2
victory over Wimbledon debutant David Nalbandian
Hewitt storms to Championship point, then wavers with a double-fault, the little
tease. He doesn't keep us waiting long. Nalbandian forces it long and Hewitt has
done it. You have to say, he's a bit good. He dropped just two sets all
fortnight. Herb has left the Sainsbury's building. They are working on your
question, Neil. I had my scooter stolen last night. I'd only had it two days.
Because of that, I reckon I know exactly how Nalbandian is feeling right now.
Sainsbury's have a lovely selection of Pink Grapefruit squash and other pink
drinks, I'm informed. Thanks for all your emails. The sky is very blue now.
Third set: Hewitt 5 - 2 Nalbandian* (Sets: 2 - 0)
Oh deary me. Two double-faults. Nalbandian has all but given up. Hewitt is
serving for the Championship he so richly deserves and quite obviously desires.
"Your report should not be in the sports pages but somewhere hidden between
the gardening section and the anitque collecting section," says Laurence
from Manchester. Laurence doesn't like tennis. Neither does his mum, apparently.
Third set: Hewitt* 4 - 2 Nalbandian (Sets: 2 - 0)
Dave has lost the plot. A dodgy net chord falls Hewitt's way. Nalbandian looks
up to the heavens and pleads for divine intervention. The crowd laugh and they
laugh and they laugh. Because, after all, it's sooo funny. Next thing he'll
balance his racquet on his head. Hewitt wins the game very easily by the way.
David still seems to be affected by those line-calls.
Third set: Hewitt 3 - 2 Nalbandian* (Sets: 2 - 0)
Boo-hiss-boo. Our Dave is broken back. Can these boys not hold their own serves
or what? Nalbandian is the victim of some unfortunate line-calls and he carries
on his remonstrations with the umpire throughout the break. He's drinking some
vile-looking pink stuff. It's definitely not Robinson's. Ed and Soph, do
Sainsbury's make any pink squash?
Third set: Hewitt* 2 - 2 Nalbandian (Sets: 2 - 0)
Dave is listening. He breaks back. He's not playing half badly really. And we
all know what happened to Hewitt in his quarter-final against Schalken. He had
match points and then went on to lose two sets. Nalbandian is not out of this
yet. Honest, he's not. Honest. Charlie Smith writes in: "I'm reading your
report because I am at work. I am at work now because I did not get all my work
done last week. I did not get all my work down last week because I spent too
much time reading about what was going on in the tennis. I feel trapped."
Charlie asks that the following be "passed on to the ladies" like a
common cold: he's a single, 26-year-old barrister who can cook. Do us some
cheese on toast then, Charlie, with a bit of Worcester sauce on top.
Third set: Hewitt 2 - 1 Nalbandian* (Sets: 2 - 0)
Neil Clough is back. "Please ask the Sainsbury's chaps if they have any
plans to open stores in America. Next to the streakers and sporadic rain it's
something I miss about dear old England." Well, Herb et al? Nalbandian
saves a break point himself beautifully with an angled slice volley at the net -
very cool under pressure. He might be cooler if he shaved off that face fuzz
though. And then after all that, Hewitt wins the game. He's pumped. He screams
again, his eyes are out on stalks, the veins pop out of his neck and he points
at someone in the crowd. Is this to be all over in straight sets? Come on, Dave,
entertain us.
Third set: Hewitt* 1 - 1 Nalbandian (Sets: 2 - 0)
It's just a slightly different game to the Ivanisevic v Rafter final last year.
Neither player has served and volleyed once yet. "I'm an Australian,
sitting a shift at a scientific experiment on the Swiss-French border,"
says Gaby Bright. "There is not much to do - just collecting data - and
taking advantage of fast internet connection to trawl the web. Go, Aussies,
go." Quite. But Hewitt makes heavy weather of this game. However, he saves
both his break points quite brilliantly. Nalbandian screams out "No!"
really loudly when he muppets the ball into the net. Hewitt clenches his fist
and glares at his opponent after he wins the game with a smash. Grr!
Third set: Hewitt 0 - 1 Nalbandian* (Sets: 2 - 0)
Sean Matthews from the English department of the University of Wales wanted to
let us know that he is reading. "I'm in an internet cafe in Sofia and I
wondered what the score was," he says. Dave saves a break point to hold on
to his first service game of this set.
Second set: Hewitt* 6 - 3 Nalbandian (Sets: 1 - 0)
After just an hour and 16 minutes of actual play, Hewitt takes the second set
with an ace. "Come on!" he screams again. President Neil is back:
"NBC have just shockingly replayed the streaker incident in its entirity
(apart from a strategically placed blurry bit) including the leap over the net,
flabby buttock display and brilliantly executed moonwalk. Not sure if McEnroe's
daughter got to see any of it but you can bet Tatum is onto her lawyers as we
speak...corruption of a minor and all that."
Second set: Hewitt 5 - 3 Nalbandian* (Sets: 1 - 0)
As you were, sir. 1610 hours, Hewitt punches the air for the first time and
screams "Come on!" He's not business-like now. There is a similar
ejaculation from the Aussie (behave) at the end of the game as he breaks
Nalbandian's serve. Hewitt is very strong mentally. He now serves to take a
two-set lead. Before that last rain break we had a game on our hands.
Second set: Hewitt* 4 - 3 Nalbandian (Sets: 1 - 0)
Well it was a 35-minute break in the end. "We are following your commentary
while working through customer complaints in customer management at Sainsbury's,"
write Matt, Soph, Ed and Herb. "So if anyone has any burning questions they
have always wanted to get off their chest about Sainsbury's now is their
chance." Hewitt wins the game to maintain the slight advantage in this
second set. He's deliberately slowing play down to make Nalbandian nervous.
3.40pm: Rain delay update No2
Ho-hum. It's just a 15-minute shower, so they say. Andrew Peacock reckons BBC
pundit Pat Cash could do with one of those. "Has Pat Cash has been sleeping
rough?" he asks. "His look is out of the same book of personal
grooming that Nalbandian's using methinks." We're all so hypercritical
today, aren't we?
Second set: Hewitt 3 - 3 Nalbandian* (Sets: 1 - 0)
Dave gets the benefit of the net chord to win the game, despite a couple of
mishits along the way. It's quite exciting stuff now. I'm interested to know who
out there is reading this on a Sunday afternoon, and more to the point, why.
You've clearly got nowt better to do, so drop me an email. I can see Mac has
still got his daughter on his knee. Or at least I hope it's his daughter. Boo-hoo,
just when Nalbandian was beginning to get his act together, the rain returns. I
predicted that, you know.
Second set: Hewitt* 3 - 2 Nalbandian (Sets: 1 - 0)
Hewitt wins the game 40-30. He's looking very business-like, if slightly spotty.
I need the loo. "I'm watching the game in the USA and during the rain break
McEnroe's daughter joined him in the commentary box and sat on his lap for a
couple of minutes," says Neil Clough who is president of his company.
"As touching as this father/daughter bonding session was, I couldn't help
but see it as the latest volley in his ongoing battle with (ex-missus) Tatum.
Interesting stuff...infinitely more so than the tennis." Indeed. Though
Nalbandian is at least putting up some opposition now. It's certainly getting
the pock-marked Argentine ambassador worked up. Apologies if that too is
discriminatory, Luciano.
Second set: Hewitt 2 - 2 Nalbandian* (Sets: 1 - 0)
Pow! Nalbandian wins another game. Oof! Hewitt looks a little peeved. "I'm
definitely not from Clapham, although I did use to drive through Clapham Common
on cross-London trips in the days before the M25 was built," writes Bob
Cushion. "Be that as it may, I've just been talking to a Greek Cypriot
friend here in Dubai whose life ambition is to go to Wimbledon, and he asked me
how much it would cost to get a ticket for the men's final. I had no idea, I
suppose there must be some available from ticket touts. Have you got any idea,
or has anyone else, how much one would be?" I think the going rate is £17,657.13.
I've got the 13p if that helps.
Second set: Hewitt* 2 - 1 Nalbandian (Sets: 1 - 0)
Two more break points to Nalbandian. And would you Adam and Eve it, he breaks
the Australian. And what a way to do it. In one of those ooh-aah rallies that
has the crowd a-gasping, David plays the following shots: One rubbish lob, a
better one, a top-spin forehand, a drop volley, then a lob volley to win.
Luverly-jubberly. Luciano from Argentina writes: "Your commentaries are
quite discriminatory."
Second set: Hewitt 2 - 0 Nalbandian* (Sets: 1 - 0)
Well that break clearly did Nalbandian no good at all. He's still rubbish and
goes 0-40 down. But credit where it's due, a few corking rallies later, it's
deuce. Then criticism where it's due, he messes up the next two points and
Hewitt has the early break. Will Riley is fascinated by the fact that spiders go
bald if you stroke them. I'd like to know what kind of evidence he can provide
to substantiate this outrageous claim.
3.04pm: Streaker update
Referee Alan Mills is not amused. Some fella has just cavorted around the court
for a few minutes much to the amusement of all. It even caused a stir in the
Royal Box, so to speak. Three people came out with red rags to cover his lack of
modesty, but he hurdled the net and started moonwalking away. Genius.
3pm: Rain delay update
Hang on, the rain has stopped and they're taking the covers back off. I'm no
Bill Giles (more Sian Phillips actually), but I'm forcasting more rain breaks
ahead. No matter, I have my crossword. Simon Brewer, who also claims to be from
Clapham (though frankly I don't believe him) says there's someone in the
Argentine's box with a very nasty mullet. He thinks it's Nalbandian's playing
partner. "Mullets shouldn't be allowed on Centre Court," he says.
That's a very right wing stance, Simon. A question: do I refer to Nalbandian as
an Argentine or an Argentinian? And what's the difference? We should be back on
in a few minutes, I reckon. Hopefully, for the sake of tennis, the break should
do Nalbandian the power of good.
Second set: Hewitt* 1 - 0 Nalbandian (Sets: 1 - 0)
Now then David, that's a bit more like it. He wins himself a few more break
points by playing with more confidence. Perhaps he is beginning afresh. He's not
managing to convert any of them though. Will Riley has written in. I suspect he
also might be from Clapham. All Wimbers fans are. Must be something of a bind
that Henley Royal Regatta is on over the same weekend, I'd imagine. "Has
Jade been let out on day release?" he asks. "She and Kim are awfully
similar." That's not kind, William. It's starting to rain and play is
suspended. Yawn. Send me some emails to keep me awake. And can someone put the
kettle on?
First set: Hewitt 6 - 1 Nalbandian*
Poor David. It's a little unfair that his first match on Centre Court happens to
be the final. Still, if he keeps going like this the ordeal shouldn't last too
long. He gives Hewitt three set points. Then he saves one with a diving volley
at the net before gooning up big time with his third double-fault. 33 minutes,
16 unforced errors, one measley game - these are not good stats, David, however
pretty Boris thinks Victoria is.
First set: Hewitt* 5 - 1 Nalbandian
Guy Lavarack, also from Clapham, thinks Nalbandian could at least have had a
shave for his big day at Wimbledon. He disapproves. I agree Guy. Personal
grooming is as important as a decent drop volley in the modern game. Goodness
gracious me! Nalbandian forces a break point against the Hweitt serve. Nay, two!
Maybe even three - I wasn't concentrating. But it all comes to no avail: Hewitt
wins.
First set: Hewitt 4 - 1 Nalbandian*
The crowd are applauding every point Nalbandian wins. Let's just say they're not
wearing out their hands too much, but at last he has his name on the board.
Richard Skinner from Clapham wonders who is more attractive: Jade from Big
Brother or Hewitt's girlfriend, Kim? He also thinks that this was a sympathy
game from Hewitt.
First set: Hewitt* 4 - 0 Nalbandian
The veteran Australian at 21 beats his junior 20-year-old opponent with alarming
ease, 40-0. He looks in very commanding form indeed. Nalbandian is staring at
his shoes lots. He looks a little embarrassed to be there. It's a bit
embarrassing to watch at the moment.
First set: Hewitt 3 - 0 Nalbandian*
A double-fault gives Hewitt a break point. Nalbandian has very dodgy stubble
indeed. He wrestles it back, but Hewitt once more seizes the advantage and
steals the game with a flashing cross-court backhand. This first set looks done
and dusted. I am eating vegetarian quiche for lunch out of a polysterene box,
thanks for asking Andy Williams. I thought it was pizza when I bought it.
First set: Hewitt* 2 - 0 Nalbandian
One thing is for sure, there are going to be rallies ago-go with these two
baseliners, which should hopefully make for an interesting match. Nalbandian has
started very badly. "But at least he has a beautiful girlfriend," I
hear the BBC's Boris Becker say.
First set: Hewitt 1 - 0 Nalbandian*
Oh dear. Nalbandian's first point on Centre Court was a double-fault. Not the
most auspicious of starts for the nervy Argentine, and he goes on to lose his
first service game 30-40. I'm trying to eat my lunch at the same time. It's now
gone cold.
A wee bit of preamble
This is David Nalbandian's first senior tournament on grass. He's never played
on Centre Court, but he has at least never lost at Wimbledon. This is Lleyton
Hewitt's first Wimbledon final. He lost just two sets en route, both in that
problemtic quarter-final.
Lleyton
heads into history
July 9 2002
Australia's first Wimbledon winner in 15 years appreciates the gravity of his
success, writes Linda Pearce in London.
Four or five months ago, after an untimely bout of chicken pox had ruined his
Australian summer, Lleyton Hewitt had a feeling that had nothing to do with
spots, fatigue or the pain of what might have been had illness not truncated his
visit to Melbourne Park.
It was about Wimbledon. Hewitt could not explain it, but he couldn't wait to get
there.
"For some reason, I was really looking forward to Wimbledon this year. I
just had a feeling," Hewitt recalled late on Sunday afternoon, before the
significance of his first Wimbledon victory had fully struck home.
"You know, I could have bombed out in the first round," he admitted.
"But there was something that was drawing me. I couldn't wait until
Wimbledon started, basically. You know, that's a strange feeling to have when
you're a baseliner coming onto grass."
It has never been his favourite surface, but Hewitt remembers watching Wimbledon
from his grandparents' house in Adelaide as a six-year-old in Pat Cash's glory
year of 1987. The Hewitt family soon started visiting Melbourne each year for
the Australian Open, and that remains Lleyton's holy grail, but he knew what
Wimbledon was and what it represented: the tradition, the prestige, Australia's
success - all of that.
Hewitt had played at Wimbledon three times before this year and never passed the
fourth round. When the 2002 draw was done he was to meet Jonas Bjorkman first,
the man who defeated him last year, Nicholas Escude, again in the round of 16,
then perhaps Roger Federer, Tim Henman and Andre Agassi or Pete Sampras after
that. Not quite the draw from hell, but not far off.
Yet Federer's shock loss in the first round to qualifier Mario Ancic was perhaps
the message Hewitt needed.
"It was a bit like the Australian Open, and and we made a point of that
being a wake-up call and just getting the job done," said Hewitt's coach,
Jason Stoltenberg. "Tournaments can happen like this, where a lot of guys
go out early, and he had to make sure he was still standing at the end."
Hewitt had also modified his game from his infant attempts to mix up his grass
game by chip-charging and sometimes serve-volleying.
"I went back. I said, 'the guys have got to play extremely well if they're
going to beat me from the back of the court'," Hewitt said.
"I returned well, used my passing shots, my strengths as my edge, my
quickness around the court. Basically, from that first year on, I've gone into
the grasscourt tournaments and just played my game."
And this year, better than ever. Hewitt continued to work on his serve, which
saved him so often over the past fortnight. He had the confidence that comes
from having won a grand slam title, last year's US Open. And he had enough
lead-up play on grass, by winning a third Queen's Club title, that he withdrew
before the quarter-finals at the pre-Wimbledon week in Rosmalen, citing a
stomach virus.
Things slowly, almost inevitably, began to fall into place. The top seed got
past the challenging Bjorkman and the less threatening Gregory Carraz, Julian
Knowle and Mikhail Youhnzy without dropping a set. He should have beaten Sjeng
Schalken in the same fashion, too.
As his friend and fellow South Australian Mark Woodforde explains it: "He's
so tenacious. You really wish you could get some younger kids and say look at
this. You wish you could bottle it up and then just open it up and get a whiff
of it, sort of like smelling salts, and say OK, 'essence of Lleyton'."
After a brilliant performance against Henman in the semis, and with just the
grasscourt novice Nalbandian left, the title was almost Hewitt's.
Yet it still had to be won, and when it came to finals day, Hewitt was more
nervous than he had been at Flushing Meadows 10 months ago as he prepared to
play Pete Sampras in the US Open final.
The first set was a trouncing. Nalbandian had never been on centre court except
during a specially granted warm-up, and was nervous and overawed.
His opponent settled slightly in the second but from 3-3, Hewitt won nine of the
next 11 games. As Cash described it: "Lleyton was his usual ruthless self.
There was nothing that was going to get in his way."
Hewitt double-faulted on his first match point, at 40-0, but when Nalbandian
pushed a final forehand over the baseline, Hewitt threw himself on his back,
then belted a ball joyously into the crowd. "It was a weird feeling. It was
like a dream," he said.
"I sort of had to pinch myself to see if it was real or not out there. You
know, to get to 40-0 up, I had to have another peep at the scoreboard to make
sure I didn't celebrate too early."
Hewitt acknowledged his family and supporters, and then briefly sat down. Then
he decided that 15 years had been long enough between Australians clambering up
the stand and into the players' box to kiss his girlfriend and mother and
embrace his father, friend and agent. So he clambered, smooched, hugged.
This was far from the best Wimbledon final, and may eventually be remembered as
the day that serve-and-volley tennis died an ugly death on the lawns of SW19.
The all-baseline affair was "a unique final, I think, more than
anything", said Hewitt, who did not play a single serve-volley point in the
entire tournament. "I think I tried to once," he said, "but I
served a fault."
But there is no doubt the Champions Trophy went to a deserving winner, someone
who appreciated the prize just as much as Goran Ivanesevic had 12 months before.
"It's a great piece of gold," said Hewitt. "I was just looking at
all the names. You walk through onto centre court there, you see the honour
board there, see all the great names that have won this tournament.
"When I got a hold of that trophy, I really wanted to have a look at all on
the names on there. Nice to have my name underneath."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PM applauds Hewitt's Wimbledon win
ROME|Published: Monday July 8, 8:05 AM
Prime Minister John Howard interrupted his European tour to ring and
congratulate Lleyton Hewitt for winning Wimbledon.
Mr Howard learned of Hewitt's victory in the Wimbledon final while flying back
to Rome from the Greek island of Crete.
The prime minister, who rang Hewitt to wish him well before the match against
Argentina's David Nalbandian, was mid-flight when the pilot of his chartered
aircraft broadcast the tennis result across the intercom system.
He and his entourage gave the world number one three cheers to mark his win.
On landing back in Rome, both Mr Howard and his wife Janette rang Hewitt to
congratulate him.
Before calling, the prime minister said his message would be simple.
"Just warm congratulations and you've made millions of Australian sports
lovers very happy," Mr Howard told reporters.
The prime minister said Hewitt was an outstanding young tennis player.
Mr Howard missed watching the game because of his program in Crete.
The visit included a tour of the ancient Knossos archaeological site and
wreath-laying ceremonies to commemorate those who died in the World War II
Battle of Crete.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Breaking through for $250m career
By SHAUN PHILLIPS, sports affairs reporter
09jul02
LLEYTON Hewitt's Wimbledon breakthrough has put him on track for career earnings
of $250 million.
Hewitt, 21, won $1.4 million plus rich sponsor bonuses for his centre-court
demolition of David Nalbandian, but that's just a daub in the big financial
picture.
Hewitt has earned an estimated $70 million in just four years.
Experts believe his on and off-court earnings will burst through the $20 million
a year barrier.
He earned an estimated $16.5 million last year when he won his first grand slam
event, the US Open, and became the youngest season-ending world No. 1.
"At his age he's got great potential to keep increasing his earnings
significantly," Sponsorship Solutions' Craig Richards said.
According to Business Review Weekly's annual sport rich list, Hewitt's total
earnings soared from $3.6 million in 2000 to $16.5 million last year.
Golfer Greg Norman was the leader on $48.2 million, almost exclusively from
off-course earnings, while soccer star Harry Kewell snared $20 million.
Veteran American Andre Agassi was the highest-earning tennis player last year
according to Forbes magazine, with about $33 million.
It has been a dizzying rise for Hewitt since he burst on to the world scene in
1998 when he won the Australian Hardcourt Championship at 16.
His management group Octagon sent out an invitation to the corporate sector
yesterday declaring their charge to be the dominant force in international
tennis.
"Take the opportunity to partner the youngest player in the history of the
game ever to become the world No. 1 and the hottest property in Australian
sport," it said.
Octagon's Rob Aivatoglou said the sky was the limit for Hewitt.
"It's unbelievable when you think he's won two grand slam (events) inside
nine months, he's world No. 1 and he's only 21," Mr Aivatoglou said as he
celebrated with the Hewitt entourage in London.
"This propels him to the very highest level in Australian sport. It puts
him on a par with what Ian Thorpe is achieving."
A five-year deal with Nike signed in 2000 and worth $30 million is the jewel in
Hewitt's off-court crown. The relationship is expected to be worth much more
when it is renegotiated.
His contract with racquet manufacturer Yonex is believed to be worth about $25
million.
Hewitt's Wimbledon win took his prizemoney to $15 million.
Mr Aivatoglou said Hewitt's global popularity was rocketing.
Hewitt, who will reward himself with a short holiday, is due in Adelaide in
September to spearhead Australia's Davis Cup clash against India.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Street parade for Hewitt
From our wire services
08jul02
NEWLY-CROWNED Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt will be feted with a street
parade on his return to his hometown of Adelaide.
South Australian Premier Mike Rann said a parade would be a more fitting way to
honour Hewitt than a more formal state reception, as it would give all members
of the public a chance to be involved.
"I just think it's really important for all of us to give a massive welcome
to Lleyton Hewitt," Rann told ABC radio.
"Anyone winning Wimbledon is a great world achievement but to do it at his
age (21) and do it so well is fantastic.
"His future is going to be huge."
Hewitt beat Argentinian David Nalbandian 6-1 6-3 6-2 in the final.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Love him for his tennis, says Stoltenberg
July 9 2002
Lleyton Hewitt's coach Jason Stoltenberg has called on Australians to appreciate
the new Wimbledon champion's tennis rather than criticise his combative
personality.
Hewitt's straight sets win over Argentinian David Nalbandian in the final today
won him his second grand slam title but the feisty 21-year-old still has a long
way to go before completely winning over the Australian public.
"I'm not sure what's caused it or what's going to happen to improve it, I
just wish people would sit back and appreciate the fight and the will to go out
there and play for Australia every single time he has the chance,"
Stoltenberg said.
"In the heat of the moment people might say things or do things and if
that's what's happened to him, that's a bit unjust. Just to sit back and enjoy
the way he plays the game, that should be enough."
Stoltenberg said the intense on-court character will have no problems relaxing
off the court and enjoying his Wimbledon triumph.
"He'll enjoy it all right. You see him on the court, he's pretty intense,
but off the court I know that he's tickled pink, I know he is," Stoltenberg
said.
"Off court he's quiet and low key and sticks to himself. On the court he's
so feisty and it's just his natural fight that's inside him."
Stoltenberg believes coaching the most driven and competitive player he has
known is one of the easiest jobs in tennis.
The 1996 Wimbledon semifinalist took on his first coaching assignment after
Darren Cahill parted company with Hewitt following reported disagreements with
the world No.1's parents.
Stoltenberg admitted at the time he felt uncomfortable taking over from a friend
but was just as anxious about coaching a player who had recently become world
No.1.
"I didn't know what to expect, starting the year at number in the
world," he said.
"It's a bit tough coming in when you've got someone who can only go the one
way.
"But he is good to coach because he's that good.
"You just point him in the right direction and he just does it, he does all
the work. He makes me look good.
"He's pretty well self-motivated, you don't have to work on that side of
him too much.
"He played great today and to win in straight sets is special."
Stoltenberg believes Hewitt would get better but said they would work on his
serve.
AAP
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Hewitt reverts to strong points
By LEO SCHLINK
09jul02
AUSSIE Lleyton Hewitt remained faithful to the strengths that had carried him to
great heights in his tennis career and another big reward was his first
Wimbledon crown.
The feisty South Australian, renowned for unrivalled speed around the court, a
blistering passing shot and a ruthless tenacity to scrap for every point,
stubbornly resisted any changes to his grooved baseline game, banishing the
convention that to succeed at Wimbledon he needed to be more attacking.
Hewitt's favourite ploy is to lure his opponent into error and, should the
opportunity arise, lash out with a low-risk winner. It is the ultimate
percentage tennis.
And his strategy worked spectacularly at Wimbledon where he won 21 of the 23
sets he contested to rise above a tournament of endless shocks.
"When I first came on, even after I won Adelaide that first year (1998), I
started playing Queen's, just leading up to Wimbledon, I was actually trying to
mix it up," he said.
"I think I was playing the wrong style of game -- come to the net,
chip-charge -- it wasn't working.
"I went back. I said, 'The guys have got to play extremely well if they're
going to beat me from the back of the court'.
"I returned well, used my passing shot, my strengths and my edge, my
quickness around the court.
"Basically from that year on, I've gone into Queen's and just played my
game.
"My serve has got me out of a lot of trouble the last few years in big
tournaments. When you start winning Queen's a few years in a row, like I have
now, then you start realising you're a real contender for the big one a couple
weeks down the track."
He was virtually untroubled by leg-weary Argentine David Nalbandian, whose first
and last service games ended with double faults. Hewitt won 101 of the 168
points, broke serve eight times to two, hit 30 winners to 12 and restricted
himself to 25 unforced errors to Nalbandian's 41 as class told.
The suspicion this would be one match too far for 28th seed Nalbandian, who was
playing his first senior grasscourt tournament, was confirmed three games into
the match by which time he had already dropped serve twice. And there was no way
back despite hints of a midmatch recovery.
Hewitt was characteristically ruthless, scrapping tenaciously for every point.
Nalbandian was mentally destroyed and then physically punished.
"Lleyton is No. 1, he can make it perfect," Nalbandian said. "He
is difficult, a very strong man. He's fast. He's difficult to do a mistake
because if you do just one mistake, he take it."
Nalbandian predicted Hewitt could dominate Wimbledon in the vein of Bjorn Borg
or Pete Sampras, such is his mental strength, ambition, fitness and outstanding
skill -- a vastly underrated facet of his game lost on his detractors.
Hewitt, who begins preparations for a defence of the US Open next month, is not
so convinced he will reign over the sport.
"Oh, I hope so, but I haven't really thought about it at the moment,"
he said. "If I can play this well for other grand slams, then I can't see
why not. But at the moment, I don't really care."
He said he was again urged to victory by dual finalist Pat Rafter.
"He called me again this morning to wish me all the best. 'Go out there and
do it for Australia'," Hewitt said. "It's a great thing to have. A guy
who I have looked up to for so many years, been in awe of him, to go out of his
way to give me a call the last couple of days.
"Hopefully he comes back."
Monday
July 8, 12:04 PM
Wimbledon-Champion Hewitt euphoric after runaway victory
By Ossian Shine
LONDON (Reuters) - Euphoric champion Lleyton Hewitt has woken after a night of
Wimbledon celebrations to declare "If I don't win another tournament again,
it won't matter."
The Australian swapped his tracksuit for a tuxedo to celebrate his maiden
grasscourt grand slam crown at the Wimbledon ball, just hours after crushing
Argentine David Nalbandian 6-1 6-3 6-2 in the most one-sided final for 18 years.
The 21-year-old -- the first Australian to win Wimbledon since 1987 -- carried
on partying at his south west London base with "a few mates and a few
beers".
"I slept pretty well last night& for a couple of hours," he smiled
as he glanced at newspaper headlines spread out before him at his breakfast
table.
"It is starting to sink in now. Yesterday everything was a little bit
unclear, it is a hard thing to describe.
"I've only just started believing it and realising it actually happened.
You dream about winning this tournament. They don't come any bigger than
Wimbledon.
"Pat Cash won it last in 1987. You don't know if you are going to get an
opportunity to win it again. I am going to enjoy this for as long as I can.
"To be a member of the All England Club is great. I don't know if I will be
wearing the club tie, though. I haven't worn a tie since I was at school.
"But now I will be able to come back here when I am 65 and sit in the
members' stand and watch. It's great."
OVERWHELMED
The world number one, who does not return home until after the defence of his
U.S. Open crown in September, spent the early hours on the phone to some friends
and radio stations back home, and he is overwhelmed by the Australian reception.
"I haven't spoken to too many people, but the ones I have spoken to said
the country has gone absolutely crazy.
"When you start your career you would love to win a grand slam, get to
world number one and win the Davis Cup.
"Now I have won two grand slams and one is Wimbledon which is probably the
biggest tournament in the world."
Although Hewitt says it would not be "the end of the world" if he does
not win another tournament, that scenario is an extremely unlikely one as he
threatens to dominate the sport for years to come.
Certainly that is something the young Australian would love.
"To dominate tennis like Tiger Woods has dominated golf would be
amazing," he said, referring to his sporting hero.
"But what he has done it just incredible. Sure, I have some pressure and
expectation on me but it's nothing compared to him.
"I thrive on the pressure, though, I'm certainly not shy of it."
Hewitt feels there is plenty of room for improvement, which is not good news for
anyone with any designs on the majors in the next few years.
"I have won all these big tournaments now but I still feel there are areas
I can work on. There are definitely areas I can make better and add another
dimension to."
That, and his best friend's lucky shirt, should see Hewitt safe for the
forseeable future.
Late last year Hewitt asked former school friend Haydn Eckerman to leave his job
in his father's Adelaide property firm and travel the world with the tennis
player.
"He didn't need much persuasion," smiled Hewitt. "Now he has got
this shirt which he wore yesterday. He has worn it to 10 finals and I have won
them all.
"He thinks it is a lucky shirt, although he says he may retire it
now."
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday July 8, 07:05 AM
Hewitt's past forgiven after Wimbledon triumph
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Lleyton Hewitt's past indiscretions and often fragile
relationship with the Australian public and media were forgotten when he beat
Argentina's David Nalbandian to win the Wimbledon men's singles title.
Pictures and reports of Hewitt's historic win on Sunday were plastered over the
front pages of almost every major newspaper in the land while politicians,
former players, and even his critics heaped praise on the feisty 21-year-old.
Australia's sports-loving Prime Minister John Howard took time out from his
European tour to pay tribute to Hewitt while the South Australian Premier Mike
Cann said the state's new sporting hero would be feted with a street parade.
In Hewitt's home town of Adelaide, the local newspaper's front page banner read:
"Our champion Lleyton, you little ripper".
A similar headline in Sydney's Daily Telegraph read: "Lleyton slams his way
to immortality".
Other major newspapers said Hewitt, who also won last year's U.S. Open title and
is already the youngest man in history to hold the year-end world number one
ranking, now deserved to be rated among the sport's greatest players.
"Lleyton Hewitt made the short trek down leafy Church Road before taking up
residence alongside the Wimbledon Gods by completing an extraordinary tennis
odyssey," said Brisbane's Courier-Mail.
YEARS OF ACRIMONY
The Sydney Morning Herald said Hewitt's triumph would help endear him to
Australians after years of acrimony.
Under the headline "Bad boy turns legend...", the paper's lead story
said: "Self-effacing, he is not. Neither is he obviously good-looking or
witty. But for the myriad of things he isn't, the world of tennis, and Australia
in general, has started to love Lleyton Hewitt, not so much for what he is but
for what he promises to become."
Despite all his success, Hewitt's on-court antics have polarised many fans and
he is not loved in the same way as many of the country's other tennis greats
like Pat Rafter and John Newcombe.
Hewitt has never been far from controversy. He once described spectators in his
home town as "stupid" after they cheered an opponent in 2000, and he
was fined at the 2001 French Open for calling the chair umpire a
"spastic".
He was also at the centre of a race row at the 2001 U.S. Open over a comment he
made to a court official during a match against James Blake.
More recently, at this year's Italian Open, he had a point deducted for arguing
a line call then throwing the ball at the umpire.
The Townsville Bulletin, in an article headlined "Will fist-pumping Lleyton
ever really be loved?", wrote: "Hewitt has the attributes Australians
love in their sportsmen -- a passionate desire to represent his country,
tenacity and a lot of courage.
"But the apparent absence of traits such as humility and grace -- which
made his predecessor Pat Rafter such a loved figure -- makes it difficult for
them to universally like him."
The best
is yet to come
July 9 2002
Amid the celebrations, those in the know claim Lleyton Hewitt has many more
slams in him - but for now he really doesn't care, writes Linda Pearce in
London.
Having waited 15 years for a Wimbledon champion, Australia now has a player
capable of winning multiple titles. Lleyton Hewitt has won two of the past four
grand slams, including the biggest tournament of all on a surface that is not
his best. So how many majors can he win? How good can this 21-year-old be?
"He's on top of the mountain and you've got to figure out, where do I go
from here?" Hewitt's coach, Jason Stoltenberg, said after Sunday's 6-1 6-3
6-2 victory over David Nalbandian, the most comprehensive result in a Wimbledon
men's final since John McEnroe thrashed Jimmy Connors in 1984. "He's got a
lot of grand slams to win, and that's what he can add to. He can't go any higher
in the rankings, but now he's won another one. It's almost surreal."
Hewitt, understandably, had not thought about the prospect of further titles
within a few hours of leaving the All England Club's famous centre court, but
when asked whether he felt he had more majors within, admitted: "If I can
play this well for other grand slams then I can't see why not. But, you know, at
the moment I don't really care."
Celebrations, naturally enough, were next on the agenda after a long round of
congratulations and media obligations. He had been greeted in the locker-room by
some of the past flag bearers of Australian tennis, and was joined at Sunday
night's Champions' Ball by new junior titleholder Todd Reid and another
Sydneysider, doubles winner Todd Woodbridge.
Hewitt had proved that not only giants with booming serves and dominant net
games can succeed at Wimbledon; that those supposed modern necessities are not
as important as a ferocious determination complemented by a lifelong hatred of
defeat and the game's best heart and legs.
So, how many can he win? Four to six, according to Woodbridge, who described
Hewitt as "a freak, really, in a way. I mean, people like Lleyton come
along every 15-20 years, one person like that".
"As many as he wants," said former Davis Cup captain Neale Fraser.
"It just depends on his attitude and what he wants to do in life and all
those sort of things. The world's his oyster. I think he could play on all
surfaces. It seems to be that clay is his least favourite surface, but I find
that hard to believe the way he scampers around the court."
Paul McNamee, the former doubles champion and now Australian Open chief
executive, was more specific. "Two US Opens, two Australian Opens, one
French and one or two Wimbledons. The real greats are above five slams but he
can probably win all four, and that's the great thing about him. Probably the
French will be the hardest for him."
Andre Agassi became the most recent of only five players in history to have won
all four of the major titles when his set was completed at Roland Garros in
1999. Hewitt has never passed the quarter-finals there, for clay is where his
lack of power has been most easily exploited and his counter-punching style
least effective.
"He's a great player," said Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald.
"That adjective is over-used in all sport, but he is truly a great player,
and he could win all four majors, I think. You never really know, but there's no
question he could win several more majors.
"How many it's impossible to know but I think it's a significant thing that
he can still improve. He can certainly win the Australian Open, and I believe he
can win the French as well. He has the style of game that can win on every
surface. The French is going to be the hardest and that's more physical, but I
think it's possible that he can do it. I'm not sure about next year, but I
certainly believe he can win that in the near future."
Davis Cup coach Wally Masur pointed out that McEnroe won the last of his seven
grand slam singles titles at the age of 24, while Fitzgerald conceded the risk
of burnout could be a factor for a player who won his first ATP title at the age
of 16, but used the examples of Agassi and Pete Sampras still playing into their
30s.
"Time decides that," he said. "Bjorn Borg started very early also
and he stopped at 26. I hope Lleyton's around a lot longer than that, for all
our sakes."
Another South Australian, Mark Woodforde, said the most sobering thought for
many of Hewitt's rivals was the fact that he could win at Wimbledon without once
having to serve and volley over seven rounds.
"It's got to inject so much confidence into him and a lot of fear into the
others, and I just think it's going to add to the aura," Woodforde said.
"Instead of it being maybe a couple of feet wide it's now 10 feet wide. So
perhaps what Pete Sampras is losing Lleyton has just taken on board, and I think
you'll find he'll win a lot of matches even before he's gone on the court.
"I mean, how do you beat him? Nalbandian, for example, does he stay on the
baseline and try and out-hit him, which he can't do over five sets? It's just
the mental effort of thinking how to beat Lleyton would be too much for some
guys.
"He's always going to have a chance of winning the US Open again, the
Australian sits nicely, and maybe the one that we all thought he would have the
best chance of winning a few years ago is probably the hardest one for him. But
being only 21, he's going to get stronger, bigger, he's going to learn more
about the game and he'll probably get close to having a crack at the French,
too."
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Lleyton, patron saint of ex-brats
By Tony Stephens
July 9 2002
The best line to come out of Lleyton Hewitt's Wimbledon triumph was from his
father, Glynn, after his son had taken a congratulatory call from the Prime
Minister, a day after John Howard had met the Pope. "Does that mean we're
blessed?" Glynn Hewitt asked.
Young Hewitt might well feel blessed today, blessed by the Prime Minister and
the people of Australia, if not by the Pope.
Part of Hewitt's appeal lies in the contrast between the mature professionalism
of his game and the artless innocence of the young. "I couldn't give a
stuff about that," His Blessedness had said before the final, on the
importance of being the world's number one player.
"I had no idea what I was going to do if I won," he said after the
final. He suddenly decided to climb into the crowd, as Pat Cash had in 1987.
"I went back to my chair and then thought, 'Stuff it, I'll go and do it.'
It's been 15 years since an Aussie won so I thought I'd copy him out
there."
Australian heroes are made of such deeds. Many Australians did not much like
Hewitt until this week. Now they have turned to him. He has changed a good deal,
in that his behaviour is more attractive. Perhaps we have changed, too.
Australia used to be one of those happy lands that, in the words of Bertolt
Brecht, didn't need heroes. The only heroes accepted were sportspeople and
soldiers, just as it is all right today to be an elite sportsperson or a member
of the elite SAS Regiment, while certain academics and opinion leaders are
sneered at as elites.
Howard Florey shared a 1945 Nobel Prize for purifying penicillin and developing
its medical uses, and saved at least 50 million lives, but was never an
Australian hero. Yet Florey and Hewitt share the qualities of champions -
tenacity, dedication, discipline, self-trust and the belief that every point, or
every life, is
precious. Hewitt's dedication began as a boy when he realised he would never be
big enough to serve and volley like most champion Australian players. This was
at a time, before Andre Agassi, when tennis writers were saying that only tall
men would reach the top in future.
Tennis is a gladiatorial sport but Hewitt determined not to let his size get in
his way. Having mastered the game's physical side, he set about the mental side.
He stumbled along the way but he is only 21 and his victories at the US Open and
now at Wimbledon will ensure he is remembered for the way he played rather than
the way he acted. He has realised that champions can be pleasant enough.
He had dreamed of this day for almost as long as he can remember.
He said his victory was "proof to every kid playing in the local club in
Australia that dreams can come true. You've still got to put in a lot of hard
work but it is possible."
Australians like that sort of thing. They like the way the kid has grown up.
They are prepared to change their minds about him. And, in these unsettled
times, they are happy to welcome another hero.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Winning over the critics
By SHAUN PHILLIPS, sports affairs reporter
09jul02
LLEYTON Hewitt is growing up and Australians are taking him to their hearts.
But Hewitt's camp yesterday hit out at critics who continue to qualify praise
for the world No. 1 with concerns about his behaviour.
Supporters said Hewitt had matured greatly, but that many Australians refused to
recognise the fact.
They said while the driven 21-year-old would never be as popular as the
easy-going and universally admired Pat Rafter, it was time to give Hewitt a fair
go.
Hewitt's coach, Jason Stoltenberg, said he couldn't understand the antipathy of
many towards his famous charge.
"I'm not sure what's caused it or what's going to happen to improve it, I
just wish people would sit back and appreciate the fight and the will to go out
there and play for Australia every single time he has the chance,"
Stoltenberg said.
"In the heat of the moment people might say things or do things and if
that's what's happened to him, that's a bit unjust.
"Just to sit back and enjoy the way he plays the game, that should be
enough. Off court he's quiet and low-key and sticks to himself. On the court
he's so feisty and it's just his natural fight that's inside him."
As debate raged about Hewitt's place in the hearts of Australians, experts
declared there was no doubt he had taken a major step towards tennis greatness.
"The tennis world has another superstar," former Australian champion
John Alexander declared.
Australian Davis Cup selector Allan Stone said that just as Hewitt's game had
developed, so had his behaviour.
"I think some people are judging him on what they remember of him a couple
of years ago, not what they see today," Stone said.
"I heard one of most influential Melbourne broadcasters (Neil Mitchell)
today expressing reservations about Lleyton.
"I think that's disappointing because there's no doubt Lleyton's behaviour
has improved.
"Whether that's a conscious effort or maybe a maturity thing, I don't know.
You do get smarter as you get older.
"He's always been super-competitive and allowed his emotions to come to the
fore, but when he goes off, it's usually against himself.
"His volatility is one of the reasons he's great. You can't expect him to
be totally subdued and meek and mild and get the results as well."
Controversy has been a constant companion on Hewitt's ride to the top.
Blow-ups include when he labelled an Adelaide crowd stupid for supporting his
opponent in a 2000 match. At the 2001 French Open he called an umpire a
"spastic".
Later that year, at the US Open, he was accused of racism after comments were
taken to mean a black linesman was favouring a black opponent.
Hewitt certainly looks like a different player these days. Gone is the long hair
and back-to-front cap. And the fist-pumping and ear-popping "c'mons"
are less prevalent.
But it's hard to argue against the contention Hewitt is admired more than he is
loved.
Rob Aivatoglou from Octagon, which manages Hewitt, said Hewitt was "a
terrific ambassador and sportsman".
"It's very disappointing that some people look for the negative all the
time," he said.
"Maybe he didn't do everything perfectly when he was younger, but how many
of us can say that they have."
Mr Aivatoglou said prospective sponsors had recently conducted focus group tests
on Hewitt.
"The findings are not in sync with the opinion that filters through some
sections of the media," he said. "The feedback is that people like
Lleyton Hewitt.
"Companies won't back someone who is unpopular in the community, and they
are lining up to back Lleyton."
Asked to compare the public's response to Hewitt, as opposed to Rafter, Mr
Aivatoglou said the comparison was unfair.
"But if you look at what Pat had achieved at age 21 against what Lleyton
has achieved, I don't think there is a contest," he said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hewitt's win: what they said
09jul02
Daily Telegraph
'I was very, very nervous. Luckily, he settles down pretty well, it doesn't
bother him and he goes out there and does his job. It was great to see. It was
unbelievable. We're very proud of him.'
Glynn Hewitt (father)
'That was fantastic and something Lleyton has always dreamt about. I couldn't be
more happy for him. I think Lleyton would look at the Australian Open as his
next Grand Slam achievement in preference to the French.'
John Newcombe (triple Wimbledon champion)
'Lleyton was his usual ruthless self. That was the title he really wanted to get
and nothing was going to get in his way. He was the toughest player and the best
all around player he could be. It was faultless really.'
Pat Cash (1987 Wimbledon champion)
'The sky is the limit for him. Now he has won Wimbledon there is the chance to
win the other two. It's all about luck, keeping him healthy and the will to
win.'
Jason Stoltenberg (coach)
'He put his stamp on the match and served big at the right time, hit the ball
hard and came to the net today more than any other time in the tournament.
Champagne was not the order of the day in the dressing room, the beer came out.'
Wally Masur (Davis Cup coach)
'Lleyton has the makings of a superstar and that is what tennis needs. The guy
has ability and is only going to get better.'
Brad Gilbert (coach of Andre Agassi for eight years)
'There is a lot of work to be done, but Lleyton is just great to work with. He
has almost got a boyish sort of figure, very lean and good muscle ratio which
gives him his pace round the court.'
Andrea Bisaz (chiropractor-kinesiologist)
'He's a bit of a freak and is blessed with good genes. As the years go by there
will be more body stress and it's up to me to keep his body strong so he doesn't
break down. An elite athlete like Lleyton needs stimulus to keep his mind fresh
and all this kind of work will be done between tournaments.'
Mark 'Muddy' Waters (physical trainer)
'His endorsements are headed in one direction up, up, up.'
Tom Ross (manager)
'It was unbelievable just being on centre court and Lleyton winning two Grand
Slams at 21, and right now who knows where it's going to lead?'
Hayden Eckermann (best friend of nine years)
'This is a real ripper.'
Lleyton Hewitt
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
New champ kicks up his heels
By Leo Schlink
09jul02
Herald Sun
WITH the hard work over, Lleyton Hewitt lost his trademark intense look of
concentration and replaced it with cheek-busting grins yesterday as he
celebrated his victory and got used to being the newest Wimbledon champion.
Holding tight to his Belgian girlfriend Kim Clijsters – he scrambled up the
stands to kiss her following his victory – Hewitt was obviously revelling in
the glory of his first Wimbledon Championship at the formal victory dinner.
The South Australian, clad in a tuxedo, was the toast of the exclusive
All-England Club as he celebrated his historic win with his parents Glynn and
Cherilyn, and Clijsters, who dressed up in an ice-blue, beaded evening dress.
Hewitt, 21, and Clijsters, shared a table with women's champion Serena Williams,
her mother Oracene, and four members of the toffy British tennis establishment
at The Savoy, dining on smoked salmon and lamb at the dinner before the star
made a short speech.
Hewitt thanked his support team – coach Jason Stoltenberg, his support staff
of Mark Waters and Andrea Bizas, his parents, Clijsters and best friend and
ex-schoolmate Hayden Eckermann.
Hewitt also took possession of what is now his most treasured tennis asset –
the purple and green member's tie of the All-England Club, presented to him by
club chairman Tim Phillips, and signifying his formal entrance into the most
exclusive tennis preserve in the world.
Wimbledon has only 375 full members, plus honourary members such as championship
winners. The champion also included a traditional celebratory cigar during the
evening's proceedings.
The other star of the night, Serena Williams, also appeared to enjoy her time in
the spotlight.
Proving that the sisters who
play together also dress together, Serena and Venus Williams were both in white
halter neck evening dresses – Serena crowning hers with a tiara to remind
everyone who was the champion this year.
Before leaving for the Champions Ball, Hewitt managed to fit in a phone call to
his grandparents in Adelaide, who had been up all night toasting their
grandson's Wimbledon victory.
Max and Dawn Hewitt had been expecting Lleyton to call and share his success
with his "Nans" and "Pop".
"It's a wonderful feeling,"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hewitt's strategy was key
By former Wimbledon champion BORIS BECKER
09jul02
The Australian
WITH the greatest of respect to David Nalbandian, of whom we will hear a lot
more, Lleyton Hewitt's victory yesterday was also a victory for tennis. The
sport needs a dominant figure, someone who is a clear-cut No.1, and no one can
possibly doubt Hewitt's position in the sport.
He got the job done yesterday, regardless of his opponent's name or his
relatively lowly position in the order. What amazes me about him is the level of
professionalism he has for someone who is only 21. I am truly surprised by him,
how he goes about his matches, the attitude he brings to the court for one so
young.
He knows when to slow a match down, when he should get excited and even what
levels of excitement will bring out the best in him. After the rain break at 3-3
in the second set, he knew he had to speed up the game because he didn't want to
get into any more baseline rallies with a player who had shown he was starting
to feel comfortable on the court and who wanted to extend him much more.
Hewitt does all the right things at the right time and that is remarkable. One
of you out there might say I was 17 when I won my first Wimbledon, but so much
of what I did was instinct. I'm not saying I didn't have a strategy, but the
points were quicker, thoughts were faster, you did the first thing that came
into your head and you lived or died by the consequences.
Hewitt has to spend a lot more time thinking on the court, and it is the clarity
of his thoughts that is an inspiration. There were moments in the second and
third sets yesterday when Nalbandian got a grip, started to look comfortable and
almost played better than Hewitt. What did the little fella do? He went to the
net; he wasn't going to let Nalbandian beat him up in 20 or 30-stroke baseline
rallies, he was looking for the chance to finish him off. He knows when to step
it up, when to slow it down. He sensed his opponent could have become really
dangerous, but he wouldn't allow himself to be dictated to.
The way Hewitt plays reminds me so much of Bjorn Borg. He is a classic
counter-puncher who is also able to win free points from his serve.
In his attitude, he is Jimmy Connors. He doesn't back down, he's a
street-fighter, there isn't a timid bone in his body. It is quite a combination.
The bottom line is he is 21, and there is no reason why, in my mind, he cannot
do what Borg did and win this title five times, maybe more. He can win five US
Opens, too. He has set a benchmark that others have to live up to. He is young,
but there is something of the veteran about him. He is lethal.
There were the inevitable highs and lows over Wimbledon fortnight. The high
point was the build-up through the event to the Hewitt-Tim Henman semi-final.
The low points were the losses of Marat Safin, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras
within one afternoon on the first Wednesday. Andre still has possibilities and
why should Pete not come back and give Lleyton a run for his money? But it was
important for tennis this year that Hewitt won Wimbledon.
Thomas Johansson is the Australian Open champion, Albert Costa won the French,
and they are not what I would call real champions. To win a grand slam title you
should be a class apart. That is Lleyton Hewitt.
The Times
Matured Hewitt up
there with past champs
From AAP
July 08, 2002
LLEYTON HEWITT is attracting comparisons with two of the great past champions at
the All England Club, Bjorn Borg and Jimmy Connors.
Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker compared Hewitt with Bjorn Borg, who
won the championships in five consecutive years from 1976 to 1980. "He is
the ultimate match performer, the ultimate fighter,'' Becker wrote in The Times.
"He is the best player currently on all surfaces - well maybe not clay, but
everywhere else.
"He reminds me of Bjorn Borg, the way he plays, the way he wills himself to
win and the way he falls to his knees and turns to his family and friends in the
players' box.''
Tennis commentator and former Davis Cup stalwart John Alexander compared Hewitt
with 1970s and 1980s great Jimmy Connors in temperament, noting that Connors
calmed down as he matured.
"I think Lleyton is going through a process where he has been stunned by
the amount of criticism he has received,'' Alexander said.
"He was very, very young when he started competing and I think he
understands what the criticism has been about and he has tried to moderate his
behaviour. "I think in Australia that's been appreciated. I haven't seen
one thing during Wimbledon that you could complain about. I think he's trying
very hard and he's improving his behaviour.
"I think the Australian public will warm to him in time.
"He's an intelligent young man and I think as he is more accepted he will
become more friendly.''
Hewitt's first Wimbledon final fell on the 50th anniversary of Australian legend
Frank Sedgman's win. Sedgman believes Hewitt has yet to reach his peak. "I
think he still needs to refine his game a bit and I hope he remains
injury-free,'' Sedgman told British newspaper The Independent.
"I admire the way he's a real go-getter. He's got a lot of heart and he's
certainly got the determination to succeed.''
Last year's Australian Wimbledon finalist Pat Rafter has been a consistent
supporter of the younger Hewitt. In an ABC Radio interview yesterday, Rafter
said Hewitt was "a very strong-headed young man, he knows what he wants, is
very committed and is an exceptional talent''.
"Sometimes he over-steps the mark ... that really hasn't happened and I
really haven't seen a big issue of that happen in the last couple of years. He
is learning all the time,'' Rafter said.
Australian Davis Cup coach Wally Masur's only concern about Hewitt is that his
strenuous playing style could expose him to premature burn-out.
"He's so dynamic and players like that tend to get injured,'' Masur said.
"He's very young and he's had a few things obviously. That's always a
possibility. Anyone who throws themselves around like that, problems can
arise.''
But he said 21-year-old Hewitt's relatively small and light frame (180cm, 68kg)
would be to his advantage, along with the expertise in his travelling entourage.
"He's got a light frame and that helps. Big guys tend to take a bit of a
pounding,'' Masur said.
"He's very fluid, he's a great natural athlete.
"He's got good people around him. He travels with a physio and a fitness
trainer and I think they are doing their best to safeguard his longevity.''
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Great Lleyton learns not to grate
By Richard Evans
July 08, 2002
AUSTRALIANS had better get used to Lleyton Hewitt: he is getting nicer and he's
getting better, which is great for the game and terrifying for his opponents.
Twelve months ago the 21-year-old was a grunting, snarling rottweiler, with
attitude. Driven by an Australian football player for a father and an equally
competitive netballer for a mother, Hewitt thought winning necessitated behaving
like a mongrel dog. "Competitive?'' laughs Roger Rashid, the Australian
coach who knows him well. "The moment they cut the umbilical cord, Lleyton
was trying to turn it into a net and screaming, 'give me a racket!'''
But Hewitt has toned his aggressive behaviour. A couple of kangaroo jumps and
faint beating of the chest after he beat Tim Henman in the semi-finals hardly
mirrored the kind of behaviour that had Alex Corretja mouthing off in such
critical fashion before a Davis Cup final or prompted Hewitt to say it had been
a pleasure to stick it up a guy who's been mouthing off all week after he beat
Yevgeny Kafelnikov. There are two reasons for this. First, Hewitt is growing up,
and that is always much harder to do under the spotlight of fame. Second, Henman
is a mate. As is Patrick Rafter, which means he keeps pretty good company. Not
to mention his Belgian girlfriend, Kim Clijsters, who is widely regarded as one
of the nicest players on tour.
Hewitt has worshipped Rafter since the two-time US Open champion took the
trouble to practise with him when a 16-year-old Hewitt was attached to the Davis
Cup team as a water boy.
Generosity to opponents he respects is just one of the character traits he has
picked up from Rafter.
Hewitt had long, consoling words for Sjeng Schalken as they spoke at the net
after their marathon quarter-final. And this is what he had to say about Henman:
"He does get an awful lot of pressure, but I think he blocks it out
fantastic. You know, he's had an incredible run ... in any person's book. What
is it, four semis and the round of 16 in the last six years? That's a great
effort. But I think he deals with the pressure fine. In the locker rooms he
always looks very relaxed. He's a really nice guy.''
Many experts have been prepared to look beyond Hewitt's punk demeanour. "I
like this Aussie kid,'' John McEnroe said years ago. "I'm keeping an eye on
him. He's got attitude, the kind you need if you're going to the very top.''
Hewitt got off on the wrong foot when he criticised his home-town crowd at the
Adelaide tournament, where he won his first ATP title at the age of 16. The
response of the Hewitt family was to circle the wagons. Darren Cahill, who had
coached Hewitt from his early teens, did his best to broaden the young man's
horizons, but lost patience when Hewitt's father Glynn stopped talking to him at
the US Open last year and then put family travelling restrictions on the new
contract.
It says a great deal about Hewitt's drive, talent and ability to focus that he
was able to push this rift into the background and concentrate on becoming the
youngest ever No.1.
Another blunder - the supposed racist remark he made about a line call while
playing black American James Blake in the US Open - did not prevent him
destroying Pete Sampras in the final to earn his first Grand Slam title. Even
his father was surprised. "We thought it was too early for him,'' he said.
"We didn't think he had the stamina to last seven matches.''
They were more prepared for Hewitt's next big step, when he beat Rafter in the
Tennis Masters Cup in Sydney, a victory that assured him of that place at the
top of the ATP rankings. Many experts were still scratching their heads as to
exactly how he had achieved it.
Get used to him, Australia. Little Lleyton will be around for a while.
The Sunday Times
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, 8 July, 2002, 11:46 GMT 12:46 UK
Can Hewitt rule the world?
By Tom Fordyce
BBC Sport Online
Lleyton Hewitt woke up on Monday morning as world number one, Wimbledon champion
and hot favourite to retain his US Open title in two month's time.
All this, at the tender age of 21? Comparisons are hastily being drawn with the
other men who have taken Grand Slam titles in such style at a similar age.
Does Hewitt have it in him to go on to be one of the all-time greats?
Movement
Hewitt covers the court so well that, as Tim Henman found out in the semi-final,
his opponent often has to win the point twice.
Henman hit two smashes in the first set which would have been written off as
winners by most players.
Not Hewitt. Each time he sprinted and stretched to get the ball back, effort
that was eventually rewarded by an exasperated Henman putting another smash out.
Not until the umpire has called the point does he stop scampering and chasing.
Some critics have pointed at the example of Michael Chang, who, aged just 17,
took the 1989 French Open with similar tireless running.
Chang never won another Grand Slam tournament, his style taking a heavy toll on
his body.
But Chang did not possess the other weapons that Hewitt has - and the
Australian's physical condition is almost without parallel in the modern game.
Serve
Hewitt's first serve is not particularly big - he averaged 110mph in Sunday's
final - and his second has sometimes been exploited by opponents.
Pre-Wimbledon there were those who felt it simply wasn't good enough to win on
grass.
But the slower nature of both the balls and court surfaces this year evened up
the balance between the boomers and the baseliners - and in any case Hewitt's
serve continues to improve at a rapid rate.
It's not up there yet with Pete Sampras' for power, accuracy and consistency,
and in all likelihood never will be.
It may yet leave him vulnerable if Wimbledon reverts to type next year and
favours the natural serve-and-volleyers again.
But Hewitt matches Sampras in terms of competitiveness and is stronger in other
areas. His serve will not prevent him taking other Grand Slam titles.
Mental strength
Hewitt's trump card. His concentration, for a 21-year-old, is a thing of wonder.
Come up against the man from Adelaide and you know he will be utterly focused on
defeating you, seldom wavering until you are beaten.
Henman's focus comes and goes. His aggression is an occasional thing best
summarised by that dreadfully awkward clenched fist.
Hewitt is at your throat from the shout of 'play' to the final point.
In that he carries echoes of Jimmy Connors at his peak. Daniel Nalbandian,
nervous already, was taken apart in ruthless fashion.
Hewitt doesn't make as many mistakes as his rivals. Nalbandian made twice as
many unforced errors in the final and it was the same story for Henman in their
semi-final.
In contrast to Bjorn Borg, that concentration does not equal a lack of emotion
on court. But did you really expect an Aussie to behave like a Swede?
Style
In brutal terms, Hewitt lacks a killer shot. He hits with accuracy and
aggression rather than sheer power on either side.
Andre Agassi and Sampras shared the ability to blow an opponent off court.
Hewitt prefers to wear his down with a series of attritional shots rather than
one big one.
Both Agassi and Hewitt are natural baseliners. But whereas the American goes for
broke whenever he can, Hewitt is happy to hit heavy topspins, much like Borg,
and bide his time.
Try to counter that by coming to the net and he'll sense a chance to unleash one
of those punched passing-shots.
Stay back, and you're likely to be ground down, out-run and more likely to crack
first and make a mistake.
Age
Boris Becker was 17 when he won Wimbledon for the first time; Borg 20, Sampras
21 and Agassi 22.
At 21, Hewitt has made his breakthrough at the right time. Talent and
determination have taken him to the top; now, like Sampras after he won his
first Wimbledon in 1993, he can develop a game to suit the surface.
Hewitt has already become the youngest man to top the world rankings since the
system came into being.
With at least 10 years to go in his career, injuries permitting, he has a chance
of equalling Sampras' record 286 weeks at the top of the pile.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, 8 July, 2002, 02:06 GMT 03:06 UK
McEnroe delighted for Hewitt
McEnroe wants Safin and Federer to learn from Hewitt
Former champion turned BBC commentator John McEnroe gave his verdict on Lleyton
Hewitt's first Wimbledon title.
What we've got with Hewitt is a worthy champion.
We all thought he could win it, but maybe not this fast as he's only 21 now, and
I thought it would take a little longer for him on these grass courts for him to
pull it off.
But when I saw him playing his first-round match, I saw that he believed he
could win the thing, and he did have a nice draw too.
When he needed to pick it up in certain games that's what he did.
It got a little scary for him against Schalken, but once he pulled out of that
you could sense he thought he could get through.
As for the final - Nalbandian was overwhelmed at the beginning, and that was to
be expected.
If you put the first set aside, he played a great second game in the second set,
but then the rain came.
He must have known, or at least his coach Gabriel Marcus must have told him in
the locker room that you've got to come out here - don't let Hewitt take the
initiative.
It just looked like he tightened up a bit, and that gave Hewitt a chance to
regroup.
Nalbandian got it together temporarily again, but it was too late, because he
was down by two sets.
You could see that he hasn't played many five setters, and I know he's 20, but
mentally and physically he looked a bit spent.
Give credit to Hewitt though, he knew Nalbandian had never set foot on Centre
court - and that made a difference.
I love the way Hewitt plays - we need more guys like this.
But as for winning more championships here - if he remains a baseline player
then he'll have to pay off the groundsman to keep it this slow.
I never imagined that I'd see a match like this at Wimbledon - some of it was
classic moonballing in the clay court sense, but maybe that's the future.
As for Britain's hope Tim Henman, I thought he had a great chance to win it this
year.
You just get the feeling that the sands of time are slipping away from him - to
me, his lot isn't going to get any easier.
The guy who is better at net always has the better chance - had Tim done all
those things better who knows?
This was the baseliner's tournament, but don't count the serve and volleyers out
yet.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Often out of line but you've come a long way, baby
July 09, 2002
LLEYTON Hewitt was born on February 24, 1981. He played his first cross-court
forehand two hours later. He clenched his fist, turned to the maternity nurse
and screamed.
He is now 21. But Little Lleyton only started growing up on the final day of
August last year.
That's when he was fighting for his life in the US Open. It was a second-round
match, his opponent was James Blake, a black American. A baseline judge was a
black American, too.
Down 1-2 in the third set and foot-faulted for a second time by the black
linesman, Hewitt approached umpire Andreas Egli and made that infamous stupid
claim: "Look at him, mate," Hewitt said, referring to the linesman.
"Look at him. You tell me what the similarity is."
He said afterwards he was referring to the fact that the same linesman had made
the two foot-fault calls.
Interviewed immediately after the game, Blake thought differently. He said he
believed the comment was racially driven and meant to suggest the black linesman
was favouring the black player.
After speaking with him in the locker-room, Blake gave the Australian the
benefit of the doubt and said later he did not have a problem with his remarks.
At that moment, he saved Little Lleyton's scrawny white hide.
Still, for the next three days, he was questioned fiercely over the incident.
But without Blake's indignation, Little Lleyton had breathing space. He held his
line and held his nerve. He apologised if the comments were taken the wrong way.
And Little Lleyton has apologised very few times in life. No one close to him
has dared seek one.
But as the furore at the US Open showed no sign of lessening, he said:
"I've made mistakes on and off the court and if I'm going to be a better
player on and off the court, I've got to learn from that. I've been through this
now for three straight days. It had nothing to do with his race."
Finally, the media backed off, not so much because they believed him, but more
that the 20-year-old Australian boy would not break. The media found out what it
must be like to play a five-setter against him.
This match against Blake and its aftermath, though, was the turning point in
Little Lleyton's career. The boy in the crib with the tennis racquet started
growing. Suddenly he sensed unbreachable boundaries where he once saw nothing
but green lights; limitations where he once saw opportunities; sensitivities
where he once saw softness.
More importantly, those who surrounded him and advised him decided that to
continue to indulge him was not to help him – it was to weaken him.
Broadly, they continue to cocoon him, pick and choose the sycophants in the
media he can talk to, paint critics as devils who seek to destroy him, stoke him
to seethe against the world that won't fall at his feet. They have not reset
their goals for him, merely the manner they will be and can only be achieved.
Some basic standards have been put in place.
He doesn't call umpires spastics any more, or cast the crowds that come to see
him play as silly or stupid. Here and there he loses his way – he was
penalised in May for unsportsmanlike behaviour when he lobbed a ball back that
struck the umpire during the Rome Masters tournament.
So here he is now. Wimbledon champion, US Open champion and Davis Cup hero. He
is a better player already than Patrick Rafter and Pat Cash. He has won Grand
Slams on grass and on hard court. He will get the better of clay soon enough,
and the only thing that he can't beat on the Rebound Ace of the Australian Open
is chicken pox.
He deserves all of this. He dreamed like few other kids of becoming a champion.
He wanted to be Cash, he wanted to be Rafter. He has worked until his hands
blistered, his muscles burnt raw and his mind boiled over.
It was wonderful to see him make his climb to his family and friends up the
centre court wall. Great to see the kid happy, barely believing his luck. He is
the best player in the world and he deserves to be.
Little Lleyton has always got balls back that the SAS wouldn't go after. But he
has improved his serve so much it is now a weapon that can wound opponents and
his return-of-serve finishes them off.
Little Lleyton has a wonderful smile. He is getting easier to like. He is
impossible not to admire. And to think he is only 11 months old.
from the media...
TR.NET TOP 10 MEN: MONDAY, JULY 8
All hail Lleyton
By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net
1. Lleyton Hewitt: The Wimby champ is an early 1990s Jim Courier with quicker
feet and a better all-around game.
2. Tim Henman: Had he reached the Wimbledon final, Henman may have taken a set
from Hewitt. Scratch that, this smalltime player would have been routed.
3. David Nalbandian: The most unlikely Wimby finalist since Chris Lewis played
tentatively against Lleyton, but showed a powerful, accurate ground game during
the rest of the fortnight and will be a force to be reckoned with.
4. Xavier Malisse: Super-talent looked like a lock to reach the final after
beating Rusedski but his physical conditioning is still suspect.
5. Albert Costa: Stays in top five because he decided to honeymoon rather play
Wimbles. With a good draw, could jumped on enough backhands to have reached the
second week.
6. Marat Safin: Should we excuse the giant Russian for imitating a tanked
Lilliputian in his loss to Olivier Rochus at Wimby? No, he needs to get serious
again.
7. Andre Agassi: Loss to Srichaphan at the AELTC was his worst Slam defeat in
more than two years. Trouble afoot?
8. Juan Carlos Ferrero: Give him credit for being the only notable Spaniard to
compete on grass. Expect a hot summer.
9. Tommy Haas: The German would likely have been a factor in England if he
didn't have to withdraw due to his parents motorcycle accident. Godspeed.
10. Nicholas Lapentti: It was nice to see the delightful Nico do some damage at
a Slam again. Now, can he bring the same attitude to the hardcourts?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sports Network's Men's Tennis Rankings
By Scott Riley
Tennis Editor
Player Previous Rank
1. Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) 1
The reigning Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion.
2. Tim Henman (GBR) 8
Lost to Hewitt in Wimbledon semis.
3. Andre Agassi (USA) 2
Unable to get past second round at the All England Club.
4. Marat Safin (RUS) 3
Still titleless this season.
5. Andy Roddick (USA) 5
Teen has been inconsistent lately.
6. Albert Costa (ESP) 6
Skipped Wimbledon in order to honeymoon?
7. David Nalbandian (ARG) NR
Clay-courter was a stunning Wimbledon finalist.
8. Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) 7
Was not a factor on the grass courts at SW19.
9. Sjeng Schalken (NED) NR
Den Bosch title and Wimbledon quarters in successive tournaments.
10. Roger Federer (SUI) 4
Back-to-back first-round losses at French and Wimbledon?
As of July 8, 2002, at 11:23 AM ET
------------------------------------------------------------------------
TR.NET TOP 10 WOMEN: MONDAY, JULY 8
Serena stays on top
By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net
1. Serena Williams: In the past six months, has proved to be better than Venus
in nearly every aspect of the game. The Wimby champ is the clear-cut No. 1.
2. Venus Williams: It's back to the drawing board for the once vivacious V, who
played scared in the second set of the final.
3. Justine Henin: By all rights, should have pushed Venus to the wall in the
semis but couldn't work her way into the match. She needs to find a consistent
game plan.
4. Amelie Mauresmo: It was great to see Amelie use her athleticism in downing
JCap, but went back to her old non-inventive self against Serena.
5. Daniela Hantuchova: Her first set against Serena showed that Dani Girl may
just be a year away from being a truly elite player.
6. Jennifer Capriati: Where her career is going, nobody knows. Jennifer needs to
add a few new elements to her game or she's going to spend the rest of her days
looking up at the Williamses.
7. Elena Dementieva: So close to breaking though again and then plays scared in
a two tiebreaker loss to Henin. At least she's back to moving like an Olympic
gymnast.
8. Chanda Rubin: Chanda has always been an excellent first-week player at the
Slams but is still a step below the big girls.
9. Monica Seles: If Seles doesn't do major damage this summer, retirement in the
off-season isn't completely out of the question, whether she'll admit it
publicly or not.
10: Jelena Dokic: Is there a more disappointing super-talent than Dokic?
Possibly Dementieva, but at least she pushed Henin, while Jelena was bullied by
Hantuchova.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sports Network's Women's Tennis Rankings
By Scott Riley
Tennis Editor
Player Previous Rank
1. Serena Williams (USA) 1
Captured French Open and Wimbledon in the past month.
2. Venus Williams (USA) 2
Younger sister ended her two-year reign at the All England Club.
3. Justine Henin (BEL) 4
She's the best player outside the U.S.
4. Jennifer Capriati (USA) 3
Whipped by Mauresmo in Wimbledon quarters.
5. Amelie Mauresmo (FRA) 9
Unable to get past powerful Serena at SW19.
6. Monica Seles (USA) 6
Her Slam-winning days appear to be over.
7. Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) 10
Could challenge for a top-5 spot by year's end.
8. Jelena Dokic (YUG) 7
Needs to develop a service game and some type of net game.
9. Kim Clijsters (BEL) 5
Not progressing this season.
10. Elena Dementieva (RUS) NR
Do you have a better player at this spot?
As of July 8, 2002, at 11:37 AM ET
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hewitt to play for Crows
By LEO SCHLINK
July 10, 2002
FRESH from his Wimbledon triumph, Lleyton Hewitt hopes to fulfil another
sporting ambition in September when he plays for his beloved Adelaide Crows.
Hewitt is aiming to face Port Adelaide in the annual star-studded "SlowDown"
charity match, which raises money for the McDermott-McGuinness Foundation, a
charity run by former Crows captains Chris McDermott and Tony McGuinness.
The world No. 1, Wimbledon and US Open champion has been given permission by
Australian Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald to live out a sporting fantasy on
one condition -- that Australia holds an impregnable 3-0 lead against India in
the World Group promotion-relegation tie at Memorial Drive.
Hewitt, an outstanding junior footballer while attending Adelaide's Immanuel
College, will lead the Australian attack against the Indians for the September
20-22 tie.
The world champion follows Adelaide's fortunes religiously when on tour and
attends Crows matches whenever possible.
He also monitors Port Adelaide's progress and enjoys a close relationship with
Power coach Mark Williams, who faxed Hewitt a good luck message from the club
before Sunday's final.
The yearly Slowdown match draws out of retirement some of the big names
associated with Adelaide's two AFL teams.
Hewitt's father Glynn, a former Richmond, South Adelaide, West Adelaide and
Woodville forward, will watch the hottest player in tennis switch sports with a
mixture of anxiety and curiosity.
"He's got the Davis Cup coming up, then he's supposed to be playing this
SlowDown on the Sunday," Hewitt Sr said.
"As soon as David Tucker from Nike arrived at Wimbledon the other day, the
first thing he (Lleyton) asked him was, 'Where are the boots, ready for the
SlowDown competition?'
"Yeah, it's a worry. I'm not sure his build is going to hold him up in good
stead for the footy of today, but he's quick enough, he'll get the ball and he's
skilful enough. It will be interesting to see how he goes."
Hewitt regularly uses a football in training before his matches to build
fitness.
The South Australian is taking a well-earned break in Belgium with his
girlfriend Kim Clijsters before returning to the tour in Los Angeles from July
22 for the Mercedes-Benz Cup.
He will resume to increased expectation after Boris Becker's prediction Hewitt
can emulate Bjorn Borg's feat of winning Wimbledon five times, as well as also
dominating the US Open.
"The bottom line is, he is 21 years old and there is no reason why, in my
mind, he cannot do what Borg did and win this title five times, maybe
more," triple Wimbledon champion Becker said. "He can win five US
Opens, too. He has set a benchmark that others have to live up to.
"He is young, but there is something about him. He is lethal.
"The way he plays reminds me so much of Bjorn Borg. In his attitude, he is
Jimmy Connors.
"He does not back down. There is not a timid bone in his body. It is quite
a combination."
---------------------------------------------------------------------
The Advertiser
Lleyton's next target – to play Slowdown
By LEE JELOSCEK and LEO SCHLINK
10jul02
HE'S won Wimbledon so now Lleyton Hewitt wants to gets his kicks playing
football.
He has told organisers of the annual McGuinness-McDermott Foundation Slowdown
match that he is interested in donning a guernsey for the Slowdown fundraiser at
Adelaide Oval.
Featuring former Crows and Port Adelaide players, the match is scheduled for the
same day as the final day of Australia's Davis Cup tie against India at nearby
Memorial Drive – September 22.
Foundation project manager Mark McGill said yesterday that if Hewitt was cleared
to play by his management group, Octagon, he would be in a forward pocket next
to childhood heroes Darren Jarman and Tony Modra.
"He is leaping out of his skin to play," Mr McGill said.
"I spoke to (Lleyton's father) Glynn and Lleyton, and Lleyton was terrific
– he can't wait." Mr McGill said if Hewitt was unable to play he would at
least assist in the marketing of the event. Last year he donated $17,700 to the
foundation after a tournament win and has also provided some of his memorabilia
for auctions.
The world No. 1 has been given permission by Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald
to live out a sporting fantasy on one condition – that Australia holds an
unbeatable 3-0 lead over India in the World Group promotion tie on the Sunday.
Hewitt, a former standout junior footballer at primary school, will lead the
Australian attack against the Indians for the September 20-22 tie.
Hewitt tracks the Crows' fortunes religiously when on tour and attends their
matches whenever possible. He also monitors Port Adelaide's progress and enjoys
a close relationship with coach Mark Williams, who faxed Hewitt a good luck
message from the club before Sunday's final.
Glynn Hewitt, a former league footballer, said: "He's (Lleyton's) got the
Davis Cup coming up, then he's supposed to be playing this Slowdown on the
Sunday.
"As soon as David Tucker from Nike arrived at Wimbledon the other day, the
first thing he (Lleyton) asked him was `Where are the boots, ready for the
Slowdown competition?'
"Yeah, it's a worry. I'm not sure his build is going to hold him up in good
stead for the footy of today, but he's quick enough, he'll get the ball and he's
skilful enough, it will be interesting to see how he goes on that day."
As Hewitt and girlfriend Kim Clijsters left London yesterday for a break with
her parents, he was criticised by anti-smoking groups over photos showing him
celebrating by smoking a cigar.
The Queensland Cancer Fund said Hewitt had sent "a terrible message"
to all children.
"We're dealing with very impressionable young people here," the fund's
acting executive director, Alan Hooper, said.
"We're dealing with people who see a sporting hero, someone they admire and
look up to and in most cases would like to emulate."
Quit Victoria also called on Hewitt to set a better example.
"Lleyton certainly earned the right to celebrate his well-deserved win but
it is disappointing to see him posing with a cigar," Quit Victoria
executive director Todd Harper said.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Australian
Patrick Smith
Let's get excited by Lleyton and give the little bloke a cigar
July 10, 2002
LITTLE Lleyton Hewitt wins Wimbledon, confirms his position as the outstanding
male tennis player in the world and he is a hero to a nation.
Newspapers find – and worse publish – an indescribably bad poem he wrote as
a child to his grandparents. Everything about the bloke is suddenly so
wonderful.
After taking his second grand slam prize, Little Lleyton then dresses up in his
tux, parties on and is pictured with a cigar in his mouth. The picture bobs up
all over Australia. In one puff Little Lleyton goes from hero to horror child
again.
The anti-smoking lobby has been outraged by the apparent message the picture is
sending. The Quit organisation says it is legitimising smoking. Little Lleyton
has let the side down, rumbles the Quit spokesman on talkback radio.
Being any good at sport is a tough gig but managing the technique, fitness and
mental application are the easy bits. Keeping yourself nice in public is the
hard bit. Little Lleyton has mucked up in the past and banning an Australian
journalist from his Wimbledon celebrations suggests his return of serve is not
limited to the court.
However, he is entitled to be mystified by the concern that the image of him
with the cigar, clenched between his teeth, has caused. Really, it is harmless
and a bit of fun.
It is very different to a cricketer pictured smoking while he is waiting his
turn to bat, for example. That image suggests smoking is a lifestyle decision.
It is very different, as well, from Shane Warne pictured puffing. Warne was said
to have been paid a large sum to help promote giving up the rotten things. A
cigar is the traditional symbol of celebration, not a habit.
And it is not to shy away from the responsibility that sportspeople have because
of their power to influence the market place. That is a very real and heavy
accountability that goes with the fame and fortune.
But if the anti-smoking lobby is really suggesting that Little Lleyton's
celebration puff has set back their cause, then that is plain nonsense. It would
appear the young Australian has devoted his whole life to honing his body and
mind to become the best tennis player in the world.
There is no mixed message with this young man. Success can only be obtained by
devoting your life utterly to your ambition. His lifestyle, his behaviour
screams it. He would do nothing to compromise that goal. It is an image that
comprehensively outweighs any potential damage the cigar picture could possibly
do.
Little Lleyton's efforts this week will have sent thousands of kids to the local
tennis courts and not one to the tobacco shop. Be certain of that.
Not that any of this will worry the Australian. He has proved conclusively that
he is more concerned about success than any of the niceties of image.
It is interesting, though, that despite their triumphs this is no easy time for
the world's top tennis players. Little Lleyton and the Williams sisters have
failed to warm their public. In all three cases the world appeared uncomfortable
with their raw energy and ambition. Now, it is their success.
Justine Henin and Amelie Mauresmo, beaten up by the Williams women in the
semi-finals of Wimbledon, both say the Americans' domination will not be good
for tennis. People are going to get bored about it, Mauresmo said.
Now, it might get boring for the Frenchwoman if she is not prepared to look for,
or cannot find, ways of beating the Williams sisters but their reign promises to
be as exciting an era as any before it in the sport.
If they can ever overcome the tensions and distractions inherent in sister
playing sister then we will see the women's game played like it never has
before. If the Williams dominance forces opponents to reinvent their games, then
the sport can only stride forward.
Superiority does not necessarily mean predictability. Nor does it necessarily
mean lack of interest. Think back to Tiger Woods and his emergence in golf.
Michael Jordan in basketball. Carl Lewis in athletics. Sir Donald Bradman in
cricket. Ian Thorpe in swimming.
It was feared Woods would dominate golf so much that no-one would be interested
in the sport. Golf would become a yawn. Yet we have become transfixed by Woods
as he gathered four majors in a row and we now hold our breath as he chases four
majors in a calendar year.
Much the same can be said of Bradman, Thorpe, Lewis and Jordan. Or any other
sportsman or woman who rule their domain. They take us to places we have never
been before.
Now another little bloke from Adelaide threatens to do something similar. The
Williams women surely will.
Hey, let's get excited.
Patrick Smith can be heard on Melbourne radio Sport927 weekdays from 7.15am
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Sporting Life - theage.com.au
Geoff McClure
excerpt from July 10, 2002
I want to be like Tiger
With a Wimbledon title under his belt and the No. 1 world ranking seemingly his
for months, if not years, ahead, it seems Lleyton Hewitt has now decided it's
time to raise the bar - now he wants to be as invincible as Tiger Woods.
As Hewitt prepared to fly out of London yesterday, he said his new aim was to
try to emulate the golf superstar.
"He conducts himself so well," said Hewitt.
"He is so professional and he looks like he enjoys it out there. I would
just love to dominate like he has."
In the meantime, though, Hewitt has one other ambition regarding Woods - just to
meet him face to face (which so far he has never done).
He's history
And as Hewitt celebrates his first Wimbledon title, it seems the curtain is
slowly coming down on the career of the man who dominated world tennis for so
long, seven-times Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras.
All of which prompted this line from American sportswriter Tim Kawakami of the
San Jose Mercury News: "Sam pras used to be tense," said Kawakami.
"Now, it looks as if he's past tense."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Herald Sun
Team Hewitt's winning formula
By LEO SCHLINK in London
10jul02
LLEYTON Hewitt did not win Wimbledon just because of his grinding baseline
attack. Nor were his big heart and relentless persistence the key to his
emphatic triumph.
Team Hewitt is the winning secret of his success.
Closest to Hewitt, 21, are his mum and dad, his tennis girlfriend, his best
mate, a tennis coach and a wily fitness adviser.
And despite a jet-setting lifestyle, the world No. 1 follows a simple routine to
be a winner.
Hewitt, a devoted Adelaide Crows fan, trains with a footy to keep him quick on
his toes.
His refuels his 68kg frame with an egg, lettuce and mayonnaise roll or sandwich.
And it's early to bed no later than 10.30 at night and up again at 8.30am for
breakfast with his parents and partner.
This routine helped Hewitt recover after a gruelling quarter-final for his clash
with crowd favourite Tim Henman.
Henman appeared physically fresher while Hewitt looked out on his feet after a
draining slog against Sjeng Schalken.
But Mark "Muddy" Waters, a sports science consultant with decades of
experience with elite athletes, knew exactly what to do and calmly launched
Operation Recovery.
Apart from the customary warm-down in the gymnasium, Waters ordered Hewitt to
have an alternating warm and cold shower.
"Lleyton had to play Henman the next day and the warm and cold showers or
baths are designed to help recovery by shifting the body's waste products,"
Mr Waters said.
"The cold water flushes the waste products into centre of the body and the
warm water flushes it out. It takes about five minutes, but it's something I've
found that's worked in the past with Pat Rafter.
"We did it with him in the 1998 US Open after a long match against Pete
Sampras when he had to play Mark Philippoussis in the final the next day.
"He came out and won the final the next day in four sets. Lleyton did it
and recovered pretty well for Henman, too."
Hewitt destroyed Henman in straight sets before lashing David Nalbandian.
He had been perfectly honed to push for victory.
Routine was the key to Hewitt's success.
His father, Glynn, described Hewitt's daily program as "pretty
uncomplicated".
"On match days, Andrea will come over and give a rub, he'll go to the
courts early, do some stretching, have a hit and get ready to go out and
play," he said. "Once he's played, he'll do his stretches, have
something to eat, do the media stuff and come home."
That is precisely what Hewitt did on Sunday.
He maintained his routine at their rented house which was a five-minute walk
from Wimbledon.
Then Hewitt would either hit for 45 minutes if it was a rest day or 20-25
minutes on match days.
Then he would return home and decide whether to eat at home, at the nearby
mansion hired by his management company Octagon, or in Wimbledon village.
To relax, Hewitt watched a video of the 2001 Wimbledon highlights, or surfed the
internet for news on the Adelaide Crows or played table tennis with girlfriend
Kim Clijsters.
Mother Cherilyn said her son's food preferences include chicken, pasta, and
Chinese or Indian dishes.
Waters and Swiss chiropractor Andreas Bisaz were integral to the planning.
Waters, a former Essendon, Footscray and Collingwood rover, joined the Hewitt
camp 11 weeks ago.
Working with coach Jason Stoltenberg and Bisaz, Hewitt took Grand Slam
victory-planning to a new plane.
Waters concentrated on stamina and cardio-vascular training.
"There's only so much of that you can do because once he's in a match
situation that big heart takes over," Waters said.
"But we needed to vary his training and do interval training, so I brought
the football out and throw it around. He'd chase that like a sheepdog all day.
"There was some agility work, mostly working on changing direction."
The other part was to monitor his recovery.
After every match at Wimbledon, Waters would take over.
The pair would start with a brief warm down that involved walking, jogging or
cycling.
Hewitt would then shower before eating his favourite egg, lettuce and mayonnaise
roll or sandwich.
After eating, Hewitt would stretch on the gym mats for 20-30 minutes before
doing interviews for up to 45 minutes. On Hewitt's return to the locker-room,
Waters would weigh him and decide whether he needed more fluids.
On the morning of the final, Hewitt had his usual breakfast of cereal and toast
before arriving at the courts for a 20-minute hit with Stoltenberg.
He then had to wait about 90 minutes before being summoned to centre court.
Before the match, John Newcombe, a former world No. 1 and multiple Grand Slam
event winner, counselled Hewitt on what to expect.
Within hours, the Wimbledon trophy was back in Australian hands for the first
time since 1987.
The tournament of shocks had ended with the best player in the world dismissing
an outclassed challenger.
Team Hewitt were toasting a triumph sealed by immaculate planning, fulfilling
the potential of a terrier baseliner whose ascent of the sport's highest peak
began on a suburban court in Adelaide.
Sunday, 7 July,
2002, 04:25 GMT 05:25 UK
Hewitt faces the unknown
By Piers Newbery
BBC Sport Online at Wimbledon
The men's final starts at 1400 BST, Sunday 7 July - full coverage on BBC 1,
Radio Five Live and BBC Sport Online.
Lleyton Hewitt goes into Sunday's Wimbledon final an overwhelming favourite to
beat Argentine newcomer David Nalbandian.
The world number one cruised past Tim Henman on Friday in what was widely
predicted to be the toughest test he would face at this year's championships.
And Nalbandian has been the underdog in every match he has played on his way to
becoming the first man in the Open era to make the final on his Wimbledon debut.
But Hewitt could be in for a shock if he believes the hard work has been done.
Nalbandian will not give the Australian the target he likes at the net and will
be the heavier hitter of the two from the baseline.
And like all outsiders, the 20-year-old Argentine goes into the match unburdened
by expectation.
"I think the match is going to be very tough," said Nalbandian.
"He's playing very, very good but we both have the same chance to win the
tournament."
The pair have met only once, on the clay of Barcelona in April, and despite the
surface favouring Nalbandian it was Hewitt who ran out a comfortable 6-2 6-4
winner.
There is certainly good reason to believe Hewitt will become the first
Australian to win Wimbledon since Pat Cash in 1987.
He has already experienced winning a Grand Slam at the US Open last September
and has been in devastating form on grass this year, winning at Queen's and
dropping just two sets at the All England Club.
And while Nalbandian is getting used to the idea of making his first Grand Slam
final appearance, Hewitt has already set his sights on joining the great names
of the sport.
"It's an incredible feeling to see so many great champions up on the board
that have held the trophy," said Hewitt.
"It's what kids dreamt of sitting back at home watching Pat Cash win
Wimbledon 15 years ago."
This year's championships have seen a changing of the guard with the early exits
of Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, and the success of the likes of Nalbandian and
Xavier Malisse.
And it is not just the names that have changed.
For the first time since Bjorn Borg beat Jimmy Connors in 1978, the men's
singles final will be played out by two baseliners, with volleying used as an
occasional surprise tactic.
Nalbandian has been hitting his groundstrokes - and particularly the cross-court
forehand - with ferocious power on the firmer than usual grass.
But in Hewitt he faces the one man who is capable of chasing down almost
anything.
The key to the match may well be how well Nalbandian can hold serve, as it is
something he has struggled with in his last two matches.
And there is nobody better in the game at punishing the second serve than
Hewitt, as Henman found out to his cost on Friday.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Top seed should fear the unknown
Argentine is first Open-era player to reach final on his Wimbledon debut
Kaz Mochlinski
Sunday July 7, 2002
The Observer
David Nalbandian cannot remember where he was one year ago when the last
Wimbledon final was played, but there is no doubt that he will never forget
stepping out on Centre Court today to become Argentina's first men's singles
finalist at the All England Club - and the first Wimbledon debutant to get so
far in the professional era.
Argentina had only ever provided one quarter-finalist at Wimbledon, Guillermo
Vilas in 1975 and 76, before the unexpected progress of Nalbandian, a
20-year-old from Unquillo in the Corboda province, who is only his country's
fourth ranking player behind Guillermo Canas, Juan Ignacio Chela and Gaston
Gaudio.
Ranked thirty-second in the world, and seeded twenty-eighth for his first senior
grass-court tournament, Nalbandian has until now won just one ATP tour event, in
Estoril early this year. Remarkably, he remains unbeaten on the lawns of SW19.
As a junior in 1999, Nalbandian triumphed at Wimbledon in the boys' doubles with
his countryman Guillermo Coria but was disqualified from the semi-finals of the
boys' singles for arriving late on court. Little wonder that he has vowed not to
repeat the error this time, saying: 'If necessary, I'll sleep here.'
Even the disarmingly charming Nalbandian admits that he himself was not quite
sure how he has made it through to the Wimbledon final, so it is not surprising
that in Unquillo they can hardly believe the exploits of the little blond-haired
kid whose older brothers used tennis to escape from playing with him.
At the age of four, David Nalbandian finally got fed up of being left alone by
Javier and Dario, so he proceeded to steal one of their rackets and refused to
hand it back until they let him join in their tennis matches. Bizarrely, it was
to be David who has gone on to make the greatest impact on the sport.
As Argentine television was showing Boris Becker's thrilling victories at
Wimbledon, Centre Court quickly became the focus of Nalbandian's early
ambitions. Even now, in the way the Argentine fearlessly throws himself about
the court to reach and make near impossible shots, there is more than a hint of
the young Becker.
The Nalbandian family, who come from humble origins - David's paternal
grandfather was an Armenian emigré - were fortunate that in the mid-Eighties
the first tennis court had just been laid in their small town of just 20,000
inhabitants. It was made of concrete and so playing on it sometimes felt like
playing in a carport, with the conditions as far removed from those at the All
England Club as found anywhere.
Nevertheless, David showed such promise at tennis that even his initially
doubting school friends would give him an easy time in their football matches so
that he would not pick up an unnecessary injury from a bad tackle, and in due
course he started travelling the nine miles to Argentina's second city to start
playing his chosen racket sport at the more upmarket Cordoba Lawn Tennis Club.
Despite its name, there were no grass courts for him to try his hand on there,
as they had fallen into disrepair through lack of use.
Even last month, to prepare for Wimbledon, Nalbandian had to travel to the
Hurlingham Club in Buenos Aires, where he says: 'The first matches I lose with
everyone, actually. At the end I was starting to play a little better. I was
still losing but in the tie break. And now I am here in the Wimbledon final.'
His first success came with Coria representing Argentina in the 14 and under age
group of the World Junior Tennis Championships in 1996, and his gradual
improvement led to him being picked by the Argentine tennis federation for an
elite junior squad of four, along with Coria, the world junior boys' number two
in 1999, Maria Emilia Salerni, the world junior girls' number one in 2000, and
Clarissa Fernadez, the Roland Garros semi-finalist a month ago.
Despite winning the US Open junior title in 1998, Nalbandian struggled to make
the transition to the seniors at first, partly as a result of being coached by
his brother, Javier, a partnership that did not work to the pair's expectations.
It was only after David's coaching was taken over a year and a half ago by
Gabriel Markus, an Argentine former professional whose own promising career was
cut short by injury in his early twenties, that the foundations of his current
Wimbledon achievement were laid.
Both David's brothers continue to work as tennis coaches and remain immensely
supportive of their younger sibling, joining together with the rest of the
family at their home last week to follow their new hero's exploits together.
Ironically, considering that David was exchanging emails with friends at the
time of his Wimbledon junior disqualification, the family had to monitor his
quarter-final via the internet as the live television pictures promised by the
rights holding broadcaster for Argentina, ESPN+, failed to materialise when
Nalbandian's last-eight match with Nicolas Lapentti was moved to the outside
courts.
By the time of the semi-final, there was no chance of the match not being shown
live and there were numerous friends and journalists camped out at the family
home, with a neighbour across the street bringing his television outside into
the street for those who could not get into the Nalbandian house. He has
promised to erect a giant screen for the final for all those who cannot get
cable TV locally.
There are only three journalists from Argentina at Wimbledon this year,
reporting on one of the greatest moments in their nation's tennis history, but
the major newspapers like Clarin and La Nacion have had front pages dominated
completely by Argentina's financial problems (which have prevented any members
of his family from joining Nalbandian and his girlfriend Virginia, in London so
far) and this latest tennis success - which at least in Cordoba has produced
scenes of celebration that are reported to be no less exuberant than those that
greeted the 1986 World Cup by Diego Maradona's football team.
'For Argentina this is not a very good moment right now and so I think that my
matches have become more important because I can help give the country different
things to think about and enjoy,' said Nalbandian. That will certainly be the
case when he enters Centre Court for the first time today.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Hewitt - the man who would be King
Feisty Aussie strives to assume mantle
Will Buckley
Sunday July 7, 2002
The Observer
Tennis writers, like royal watchers, become twitchy when confronted by an
interregnum. The King is Dead, Long Live the King, any old king, just fill that
throne fast before people start thinking republican ideas. It is understandable,
therefore, after a Wimbledon that has marked the abdication of Sampras, Agassi,
Krajicek - who along with the ageing Ivanisevic have won the past 10
championships - and with the sense that home favourites Henman and Rusedski will
never ascend to the throne, there has been a rush to find a successor.
Natural, too, that Lleyton Hewitt who plays David Nalbandian this afternoon,
should be the anointed one. When, aged 16, he won a tournament in Adelaide he
was the lowest-ranked player, at 550, to do so. When he became the first
Australian to be world number one last November he was, at the age of 20 years
and 10 months, the youngest player ever to be so. When he won his first grand
slam, the US Open, he did so in emphatic fashion, demolishing Kafelnikov 6-1 6-2
6-1 in the semi-final and Sampras 7-6 6-1 6-1 in the final. This afternoon he is
expected to win his first Wimbledon in an equally rapid three sets. And go on to
win many more Wimbledons.
Perhaps he will. But there is a sense that his game hasn't truly been tested
during a fairly comfortable run to the final. In his past three Wimbledons he
has been beaten by Boris Becker in the third round, Jan-Michael Gambill in the
first round and Nicolas Escude in the fourth round - a trio of serve-volleyers
with the oomph to blow little Lleyton off the court. This year the only player
he has encountered who has been even close to a power player was Gregory Carraz,
the French qualifier, in the second round, and if Carraz had not missed an easy
high volley during the second set tie break that match would have been much
closer. Afterwards, Hewitt admitted to having been troubled by the Frenchman's
big serve.
In the quarter-finals he struggled against Schalken when the Dutchman started to
slow-ball him from the back of the court. This time Hewitt didn't possess
sufficient power to win points from the back. Faced by an opponent from either
end of the spectrum Hewitt had difficulties.
He is a counterpuncher who lacks either Andre Agassi's ability to win from the
back of the court or Jimmy Connors talent for defusing the big servers. His best
shot is the passing shot but, if a player either denies him the chance to play
it by staying back or removes it from the equation by serve-volleying him out of
the game, he is vulnerable. Nalbandian does not have the game for the latter but
would be well advised to try the former. If he does, a third consecutive
underdog might prevail in a grand slam following on from Thomas Johansson
defeating Marat Safin in the Australian Open and Albert Costa beating Juan
Carlos Ferrero in the French.
Certainly, a placid approach is more likely to succeed than an intimidatory one.
Peter Smith, who coached Hewitt when he was six, says: 'He was little to start
with, and then he was always playing at least two years out of his age group.
People used to try to intimidate him, but it's the worst thing you can do with
Lleyton Hewitt.'
His father, uncle and grandfather were all Aussie Rules professional footballers
and his mother a state representative netball player. His greatest asset is his
competitiveness, his tenacity, his balls. In the match against Henman when he
surprisingly lost his service to love in the first set he just went out and
broke right back. He is more Tiggerish and Tigerish than our dear Tim.
Earlier in the week Henman said 'apologies again if I'm showing too much emotion
on the court', rather in the manner of someone you can't even remember being at
a party approaching you the next morning to talk about a minor indiscretion near
the fruit cup. If Hewitt ever felt the need to apologise for his behaviour at a
party you sense you'd remember what he had done.
In his book, John McEnroe described Connors as the most blue-collar man to have
played the professional game, Hewitt is his natural successor. He even has the
tennis-babe girlfriend - for Chris Evert read Kim Clijsters.
This hyper-competitive approach has led to a few run-ins with peers and press.
Brad Gilbert has expressed surprise that given the way Hewitt carries on no one
in the locker room has 'whacked' him. Alex Corretja has said: 'Hewitt is an
unfriendly guy and he thinks he's a know-all when he's on court.' He fell out
with the Australian press when they dared to criticise him after he described
his home crowd in Adelaide as stupid for daring to support his unfancied
opponent.
There is a brattishness to his character, which is probably inevitable given the
high-octane nature of his speedy game. But he hasn't reached the dizzy heights
of brattishness achieved by McEnroe. 'They are chalk and cheese,' John Newcombe
said.
The 21-year-old is still a kid capable of innocent wonder. When he became the
first Australian player to appear on a postage stamp, a 45-cent affair featuring
his face, he said: 'Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be seeing my
image on a stamp - it's hard to believe my face could be on envelopes all over
the world.'
He will be yet more famous if he wins today against the Argentine playing his
first grass tournament and who is the first Wimbledon debutant to make the final
since Dick Savitt 51 years ago. After defeating Xavier Malisse, Nalbandian
looked forward to today: 'I think the match is going to be very tough. He's
playing very, very good. But I think all the players that I've played, except
[Wayne] Arthurs, all the players were baseline players.'
He didn't expect to progress so far. 'When we arrive with my coach, we say:
"OK, we are going to win two or three matches, and that's going to be a
great tournament for me, my first time here." I say to my Mum: "OK,
I'm going to be next week in home." And I'm in the final right now.'
As a junior he played once at Wimbledon and defaulted in the semi-finals. 'I
play quarters in the morning, then semis. In the locker room, the guy say: 'You
play at three o'clock, or 3.30 or something." Then I go to eat, I don't
know where, and I come back. And they say, "No, the match was 2.30.' I say,
"Oh, 2.30".'
The default means he has never been defeated at Wimbledon. A run that should
come to an end this afternoon against the man who would be king.
Wimbledon - The
Thirteenth Day
Ronald Atkin
Saturday, July 6, 2002
Things haven't exactly been tickety-boo for Argentina of late, what with the
economy on the blink and the football team making an early departure from the
World Cup. If ever a country needed a boost, it's Argentina. So a big round of
applause, please, for David Nalbandian, who has set his nation's hearts and
flags fluttering by marching unheralded into this afternoon's Men's Final of the
116th Championships. He is the first from Argentina to get this far at
Wimbledon, farther even than the Argentina icon, Guillermo Vilas, ever managed.
Nalbandian has booked himself a ride on what many consider Mission Impossible,
attempting to overthrow the top seed and world number one, Lleyton Hewitt, for
the first prize of £525,000. In much the same fashion that Goran Ivanisevic
walked hand-in-hand with destiny to the title last year, Hewitt's face and his
bearing have indicated something similar. Only once, in the quarter-final
against Sjeng Schalken, did he stumble, dropping two sets. For the rest it was
roses, or aces and winners, all the way. Lleyton will walk on to Centre Court
this afternoon having won 18 sets and dropped just those two to Schalken and
having won 121 games against 72 lost. Nalbandian's totals are 18-6 in sets and
131-109 in games, not quite so good but certainly not dusty.
Their totals in years are a record. This will be the youngest final in the Open
era. Nalbandian is 20 years, six months and six days old, while Hewitt looks
down on him from the heights of 21 years, four months and 13 days. This
combination, we are assured by the people who know about such things, is one
year, one month and 11 days fewer than Andre Agassi and Ivanisevic could muster
in the 1992 Final.
Hewitt, utterly dominant currently, will be attempting to add this crown to the
US Open Championship he won last September, and also trying to erase the sour
memories of the two Grand Slams in which he has competed inbetween - the
Australian Open, where he went out in the first round suffering the
after-effects of chicken pox, and the French Open's fourth round exit against
Guillermo Canas: another Argentine, it should be noted.
Hewitt has swept the grass clean this year. He is now 13 and zero (as our
cousins from across the pond say) in grass court competition, if you exclude his
withdrawal because of illness from the quarter-finals of the tournament in
Holland. He won Queen's, for the third straight year, the first to do so since
John McEnroe more than 20 years back.
The manner of his dismantling of Tim Henman in Friday's semi-final means that
support, as well as much money, has probably switched to him. Which will not
bother him any more than the praise, and occasional criticism, he receives. Here
is someone utterly dedicated to the job in hand, winning tennis matches. And he
is doing that in some style.
Everyone, or most people anyway, think he is on the brink of grass court victory
number 14. But Nalbandian certainly doesn't think so. After all, here is someone
undefeated at Wimbledon, which is more than Hewitt can boast. He came here to
compete in the 1999 junior event, got to the semi-finals and suffered the
mortification of default because he had been told the wrong time to be on court
and was having a bite of lunch when he should have been delivering the first
serve.
Nalbandian, who hails from the mountain town of Urquillo in the province of
Cordoba, was a member of the Argentine junior squad under Tito Vasquez, a former
Davis Cup captain of his nation who is currently working for the Lawn Tennis
Association in Britain as coach to the intermediate squad of youngsters. But it
is since he began working with a former touring pro, Gabriel Markus, 18 months
ago that Nalbandian's career has blossomed.
Markus, an Argentine who holds a German passport and cherishes the record of
being the only one from his country ever to defeat Pete Sampras (in Nice 10
years ago), has instilled Teutonic discipline into his man and it has showed in
the five-set victories Nalbandian has ground out at these Championships.
Nalbandian is bidding to become the first to win the Wimbledon men's crown on
his debut here since Dick Savitt of the United States back in 1951. No South
American player has picked up the Wimbledon title for 43 years, when Alex Olmedo,
a Peruvian who not only lived in the United States but played Davis Cup for
them, squashed Rod Laver in straight sets back in 1959. There is a long way for
this grandson of an Armenian immigrant to go before earning comparison with
Vilas, who played eight Grand Slam finals, winning four and losing four. Two of
the victories, at the Australian Open, were on grass in those days, but the Poet
from La Plata never managed more than a quarter-final spot here.
Nalbandian also owes cricket a small debt for his place in today's final. The
exclusive Hurlingham Club in Buenos Aires, founded by the English as its name
indicates, is the only place in the country boasting grass courts. All had been
dug up for the Argentine winter months, so in order to get practise on grass it
was necessary to persuade the club to mark out a tennis court on its cricket
pitch. And should Nalbandian defy odds and everything else to win today, it
could be because he learned how to hit a mean ball from the pavilion end.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Australians on Final Sunday
David Bates
Sunday, July 7, 2002
This morning, for one last time, the air was filled with "Purple and
Green" - the Wimbledon theme tune - as ticket holders entered the Grounds
at that magical moment of 10.30am. Whether rain or shine, "Purple and
Green" has been played by a variety of brass bands throughout The
Championships but its melody is particularly poignant today, the final day of
the Fortnight.
An ambigious atmosphere of anticipation and sadness decends upon the Club on the
second Sunday of The Championships as not only does today see the climax of the
Wimbledon Fortnight, but it is also the climax of a year's planning and
preparation.
By tonight, Wimbledon will be over and the last fans will have departed and the
attention of the world's sporting media will no longer be focused on this tiny
enclave of SW19. Tomorrow, the clean-up operation begins and within a couple of
weeks or so, the All England Club will return to the quiet slumber it enjoys for
the vast majority of the year.
Before then, though, the Club will host the 116th Championships and it is
fitting that Australians will be competing in two of today's finals.
Australia enjoys a proud record at Wimbledon, with finalists in at least one of
the five main finals at nearly every year in the post-war period. In the the
three doubles events, for instance, an Australian has appeared in 53 finals in
the 57 Championships since World War II. Although there have been a number of
fine Australian ladies' players through the years, it has been in the men's game
that they have consistently excelled.
The 1950s and 1960s were areas of particular domination by Australia, with only
two years between 1950 and 1971 when there was not an Australian appearing in
the men's final. Australia won 14 men's titles in that time and contested in 10
all-Australian finals. Unlike other eras of domination (such as the US grip of
the ladies' event in the late 1970s and 1980s through Navratilova and Evert),
what is remarkable was the astonishing strength in depth at the time. Eleven
different Australian players played in at least one final, with seven of them
winning the title.
Today will see Lleyton Hewitt attempting to join the lengthy pantheon of
Australian players to have lifted the Challenge Cup for the Gentlemen's Singles
title. Some have been present during these Championships as players (John
Newcombe in the 45 & Over event) or commentators (Pat Cash for BBC), while
others, such as 1952 Champion Frank Sedgman, have attended as special guests of
the Chairman.
However, Hewitt will be aware that Pat Cash's victory in 1987 is Australia's
only Champion in the singles' event since 1971, with Ken Rosewall's final loss
to Jimmy Connors in 1974 and Pat Rafter's twin finals defeats in 2000 and 2001
the closest they have come to winning the event. As the number one seed and
heavy favourite, Hewitt has the full expectation of a nation willing him to win.
Whether this burden will be too much for the 21 year old will have to be seen.
In contrast, Todd Woodbridge - who will be competing in the Men's Doubles today
- will have no such burden on his shoulders. There have been some superb
Australian doubles champions players present at these Championships in the
veterans' events, such as Peter McNamara and Paul McNamee, and Australia has
been consistently successful in the Men's Doubles for many years.
Woodbridge himself is much of the reason for recent successes. Having won the
event six times with Mark Woodforde, he will be looking for his seventh Doubles
Championship today with Jonas Bjorkman. If he wins, he will be only one victory
behind the Doherty brothers, Laurie and Reggie, who won the doubles title eight
times at the turn of the century, along with nine singles titles between them.
The Doherty name still lingers at Wimbledon through the wrought-iron Doherty
Memorial Gates, situated at the main Church Road entrance to the Club. However,
Woodbridge's success at The Championships and that of his countrymen throughout
the years will mean that a corner of the All England Club that will be forever
Australian.
Tennis-Wimbledon-Quotes
from the 116th championships
LONDON, July 7 (Reuters) - Memorable quotes from the 116th Wimbledon tennis
championships:
- - - -
"Maybe they are still upset we beat them in the Davis Cup a couple of years
ago" - Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentti on the organisers decision to play his
singles quarter-final on court two.
- - - -
"I think I am going to sleep here." - Men's singles finalist David
Nalbandian on his plans for getting to his semi-final on time. He was once
defaulted from a Wimbledon boy's singles match for arriving late.
- - - -
"I must have had about 500 break points in the third set." - Top seed
Lleyton Hewitt on not taking his chances to win his quarter-final against Sjeng
Schalken earlier. The match went to five sets.
- - - -
"Normally I went to tournaments to work hard, but now I actually use
tournaments as a rest." - Richard Krajicek describes the differences now
that he has a young family at home.
- - - -
"Russian pilot, NASA technology, no lift-off." - A poster for a sports
bra endorsed by Anna Kournikova proved prophetic -- the Russian lost in the
first round of the women's singles.
- - - -
"I am sure I will still be skydiving at the age of 50." - Mark
Philippoussis on whether he worried that his injured knee would trouble him in
later life.
- - - -
"If Tim Henman wins Wimbledon, I'll do this show in one of Sue Barker's
dresses." - Former champion Pat Cash, speaking on television about Henman's
title chances. Fellow Australian Lleyton Hewitt saved his blushes by beating
Henman in the semi-finals.
- - - -
"The wind was blowing, the dogs were barking, something got in my
eye." - Andy Roddick searching for a way to explain his defeat to Greg
Rusedski.
- - - -
"I cannot play. If Brazil plays the World Cup at the same time, I cannot.
It is impossible." - Brazilian Flavio Saretta on a possible scheduling
clash with Brazil's World Cup semi-final against Turkey.
- - - -
"If I can keep the matches of that nature, she will appreciate it." -
Tim Henman outlines the benefits of a straight-sets victory for his pregnant
wife Lucy.
- - - -
"I am not as strong as I seem ... off the court I am a real baby ... I am
the first to cry in the movies." - Serena Williams reveals her emotional
side.
- - - -
"I'm not a top player right now ... Maybe it's because I'm not cocky
enough." - Anna Kournikova responds to former champion John McEnroe's
comment that top players need to be cocky.
- - - -
"Accessorise, accessorise, accessorise. You can never have too many
accessories." - Serena Williams on her shopping habits.
- - - -
"I think it's really solid." - Venus Williams comments on her mother
Oracene's new orange afro hairstyle.
- - - -
"He was too good for me, it is as simple as that." - British number
one Tim Henman makes no excuses after losing to Lleyton Hewitt, his fourth
semi-final defeat in five years at Wimbledon.
- - - -
"I sure am worth major bank, I definitely am. I'm really exciting, I smile
a lot, I win a lot and I am really sexy." - Serena Williams on the
prospects of new sponsorship deals after winning the women's singles title.
- - - -
"It's a real ripper." - Lleyton Hewitt after winning his first
Wimbledon singles title.