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With a crack at Roger Federer looming large, Lleyton Hewitt saluted a resurgence of the old guard as he joined giant-killer Marat Safin in the third round at Wimbledon today.
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Hewitt blocked out the pain from his hip to see off Spain’s Albert Montanes 7-6 (7-4) 6-0 6-2 in the second round today, later declaring the troublesome injury would have to stop him walking before he stopped trying.
Another victory, over Simone Bolelli, appears likely on Friday as Hewitt drubbed the Italian 6-2 6-2 6-1 in their only previous meeting, in Wimbledon’s second round last year.
And that would almost certainly mean 2002 champion Hewitt coming up against world No.1 Federer – the only man to win the title since him – in the fourth round.
Federer also eased into the last 32 today with a 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7-3) win over Robin Soderling.
But Hewitt took special pleasure in the effort of fellow two-time grand slam winner and former No.1 Safin, a peer whose slide down the rankings in recent times has been more precipitous than his own.
The 28-year-old Russian made a mockery of his 75th ranking with a stunning 6-4 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 defeat of third seed and Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic.
“It’s good to see the older guys doing well. I’m really happy for Marat. I get along really well with him. I’ve practiced a lot with him the last couple of years,” Hewitt said.
“I played him in Las Vegas earlier this year and I kind of felt sorry for him on the court. He was terrible.
“So for him to come out and be able to turn it around and play like this in a big tournament, it’s fantastic for him.”
Hewitt’s fall to 27th in the rankings has been exacerbated by the hip injury which has hampered him in recent months but he’s not letting it play on his mind at Wimbledon.
“I’ve played with pain before, as long as it doesn’t get too much worse, I can handle it,” he said.
“I feel it most of the time when I’m out there it’s just a matter of blocking it out, not dwelling on it too much, not worrying about it.
“Unless it got to the stage where I actually couldn’t walk out there, you know, I’m going to keep trying.”
Hewitt warned his match up with 46th-ranked Bolelli may not be the pushover their previous scoreline suggests.
“The score line says it was a lot easier than the match was,” Hewitt said.
“He’s improved a lot over the last probably six, eight months, especially on clay.
Bolelli, making his second appearance at Wimbledon, upset 15th-seeded Chilean Fernando Gonzalez 7-6 (10-8) 7-6 (9-7) 3-6 7-6 (7-4) to reach the third round.
Australia’s other third round contender, Casey Dellacqua also has cause for confidence going into her clash with Czech No.18 seed Nicole Vaidisova on Friday.
The gritty West Australian has a 1-1 head-to-head record against Vaidisova, who beat Samantha Stosur to prevent an all-Australian clash in the third round.
The Czech came back from a 6-0 thrashing in the second set and 3-0 down in the third to beat Stosur 6-2 0-6 6-4.
Vaidisova beat Dellacqua in the Gold Coast tournament at the start of the year but the Australian turned the tables at Indian Wells in March.
Dellacqua admitted she did not play her best tennis against second-round opponent Pauline Parmentier of France, but she can take heart from her spirited comeback from a set down to win 1-6 6-2 6-3.
“It feels really good and it’s exciting to be in the third round at my second Wimbledon … hopefully can keep it going,” Dellacqua said.
She was hoping to pick up some tips from the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) coaches who watched Vaidisova beat Stosur.
“I’m sure the AIS coaches will have a bit to say to me, what the game plan will be,” she said.
“I’m looking forward to when Friday comes around.
“I’ll clean up my game and hopefully I can execute well and have a win.”
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