Former World No.1 Lleyton Hewitt plans to come out of retirement and double up with Sam Groth at next month’s Australian Open.
Australia’s 36-year-old Davis Cup captain officially retired from tennis after his home grand slam in 2016, but returned to the court twice more last year in Davis Cup and at Wimbledon.
And he says he is looking to get back into action at Melbourne Park and “give it a real crack” with fellow Aussie Groth in the men’s doubles.
Groth will also be playing singles at the season’s first grand slam as well as mixed doubles with Sam Stosur.
Hewitt told the Herald Sun: “It’s going to be a bit of fun, that’s what the Australian Open is about.
“I’m going to really enjoy it. We’ve been hitting a lot of balls, hitting every day, and we’re not just going out there making up the numbers.
“We want to give it a fair crack.”
Groth, 30, said: “It’s something Lleyton and I have talked about and it’s perfect for me
“He’s not just someone I know through tennis, he’s a great mate.”
tsuru
Roar Rookie
I wouldn't want to deny Hewitt his fun or even his "real crack" at the doubles. But it would be nice, and more beneficial to OZ tennis, if he would mentor one of the up and coming players (De Minaur? Polmans? Mousley? Purcell? Bolt?) by entering the doubles with them. He'd probably get automatic entry and ensure the young bloke gets some experience on the big stage maybe for a couple of rounds or more. Hewitt is a very good doubles player and he is only 3 years above the average age of the top 32 ranked doubles players in the world (average age 32.8).