Cruz Hewitt, son of Australian tennis legend Lleyton Hewitt, is trying to qualify for the main draw at the Australian Open. The 16-year-old talent also trained with Jannik Sinner - much to the annoyance of Nick Kyrgios.
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- Cruz Hewitt, son of former world No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt, will make his debut in a Grand Slam qualifier at the Australian Open. The 16-year-old Australian received a wildcard for the qualifying.
- Cruz Hewitt practiced with world number 1 Jannik Sinner before the tournament.
- Nick Kyrgios had little fun with the celebrity training guest. The Australian is a strong critic of the Italian due to Sinner's doping affair - and is therefore also taking Hewitt junior under fire.
Lleyton Hewitt spent 80 weeks as number 1 in tennis and won a total of 30 titles on the tour - including two Grand Slam titles at the US Open (2001) and Wimbledon (2002). The Adelaide-born Australian has also won two ATP Finals triumphs in his 18-year career and won the Davis Cup twice with his country (1999/2003).
The former tennis star is still present on the tennis circuit. The 43-year-old has been captain of the Australian Davis Cup team since 2016. Hewitt could soon nominate his own son - Cruz Hewitt wants to follow in his father's big footsteps. The 16-year-old is the middle son of Lleyton and his mother Rebecca. The talented tennis player, who has been awarded a wild card, will play in the first qualifying round for the Australian Open on Tuesday night. The 1.88-metre tall teenager will face Nikolos Bassilashvili, who is twice his age, in the qualifying round. Nine years earlier, Hewitt senior tried to win the home major in Melbourne.
The world number 1263 (previous prize money: 480 US dollars) has chosen the best possible sparring partner for his mission to secure a place in the main draw. So Hewitt junior practiced with the number 1 Jannik Sinner. The practice session displeased another tennis player - Nick Kyrgios.
Kyrgios shoots against Hewitt on Instagram
Since Sinner's positive doping test, the Australian has not had a good word to say about the Italian. And therefore criticized his compatriot via social media. "I thought we were mates" (accompanied by nine broken hearts), wrote Kyrgios. And a minute later: "Love you, Cruz. But this is wild."
The 29-year-old tennis bully's attack is Cruz Hewitt's first taste of how tough it can sometimes be on the tour. Hewitt junior used to be much more relaxed on the tennis court. As a ten-year-old Kniprs, Cruz was allowed to play tennis with Roger Federer for fun. For a long time, Lleyton Hewitt was something of an opponent of fear for the Swiss. The Australian won seven of the first nine duels before Federer got the hang of it - and won the next 15 games in a row.
All number 1 tennis players
No.29: Jannik Sinner.
Image: Imago
No.28: Carlos Alcaraz.
Image: Keystone
No. 27: Daniil Medvedev
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No.26: Andy Murray.
Image: Imago
No. 25: Novak Djokovic.
Image: Keystone
No. 24: Rafael Nadal
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No. 23: Roger Federer.
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No. 22: Andy Roddick.
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No. 21: Juan Carlos Ferrero.
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No. 20: Lleyton Hewitt
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No. 19: Gustavo Kuerten.
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No. 18: Marat Safin.
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No. 17: Patrick Rafter.
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No. 16: Yevgeny Kafelnikov.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 15: Carlos Moya.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 14: Marcelo Rios.
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No. 13: Thomas Muster.
Image: AP
No. 12: Andre Agassi.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 11: Pete Sampras.
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No. 10: Jim Courier.
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No. 9: Boris Becker.
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No. 8: Stefan Edberg.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 7: Mats Wilander.
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No. 6: Ivan Lend.
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No. 5: John McEnroe.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 4: Björn Borg.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 3: Jimmy Connors.
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No. 2: John Newcombe.
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No. 1: Ilie Nastase.
Image: KEYSTONE
No.29: Jannik Sinner.
Image: Imago
No.28: Carlos Alcaraz.
Image: Keystone
No. 27: Daniil Medvedev
Image: Keystone
No.26: Andy Murray.
Image: Imago
No. 25: Novak Djokovic.
Image: Keystone
No. 24: Rafael Nadal
Image: sda
No. 23: Roger Federer.
Image: sda
No. 22: Andy Roddick.
Image: sda
No. 21: Juan Carlos Ferrero.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 20: Lleyton Hewitt
Image: sda
No. 19: Gustavo Kuerten.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 18: Marat Safin.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 17: Patrick Rafter.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 16: Yevgeny Kafelnikov.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 15: Carlos Moya.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 14: Marcelo Rios.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 13: Thomas Muster.
Image: AP
No. 12: Andre Agassi.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 11: Pete Sampras.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 10: Jim Courier.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 9: Boris Becker.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 8: Stefan Edberg.
Image: KEYSTONE
No. 7: Mats Wilander.
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No. 6: Ivan Lend.
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No. 5: John McEnroe.
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No. 4: Björn Borg.
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No. 3: Jimmy Connors.
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No. 2: John Newcombe.
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No. 1: Ilie Nastase.
Image: KEYSTONE
