BBC SPORT | Tennis | Hewitt conquers summit



By Caroline Cheese BBC Sport Online

After 12 months of seeing his name permanently prefixed by the words 'world number one', Lleyton Hewitt might have been expected to be accustomed to his lofty status.

Not a bit of it.

As the 20-year-old took possession of the year-end number one trophy for the second straight year, he was unable to suppress the excitement.

"I'm just over the moon to get this trophy again," he said.

The most special thing about winning the Champions Race again this year is the way I have bounced back

Lleyton Hewitt

Hewitt's delight has a lot to do with the struggles he has endured in order to reach the pinnacle once again.

Agassi defeat hands Hewitt top spot

He began the season stricken with chicken pox and played just two competitive matches before arriving in Melbourne for the start of his home Grand Slam.

It could not have gone worse.

Clearly under par, he was beaten in the first round by Spanish journeyman Alberto Martin and afterwards accused his opponent of "shocking" gamesmanship.

Having taken a month off to recover from the after-effects of the virus, Hewitt prospered on the American hardcourts and had a reasonable clay court season.

But the defining moment of his career to date came on the grass of Wimbledon, where he trounced Tim Henman in the semi-finals before blowing away David Nalbandian to lift the hallowed trophy.

Lleyton Hewitt
Hewitt described winning Wimbledon as a "dream"

At the time he was elated, describing it as "a dream", but the effects of channelling his mental and physical efforts into that fortnight took their toll in dramatic fashion.

"My immune system just hit rock bottom after Wimbledon," he said.

"I put everything into winning it this year and I just hit a wall."

Though Hewitt reached two finals, he was clearly below his best and the explosive side to his game was strangely lacking.

That was not the case off the court where he continued to be dogged by controversy.

In Cincinnatti he became embroiled in a row with the ATP over a fine imposed on him for refusing to do a compulsory television interview.

But Hewitt's greatest strength is his ability to shrug off adversity and it was typical of the Australian that he responded to the punishment by winning his next match 6-0 6-0.

The row continues to rumble on, and Hewitt shows no sign of giving in.

But whatever his critics may say about his attitude to authority, he can have few detractors when it comes to his respect for the game and its protagonists.

Weeks at number one

Pete Sampras 286

Ivan Lendl 270

Jimmy Connors 268

John McEnroe 170

Bjorn Borg 109

Andre Agassi 87

Stefan Edberg

Jim Courier 58

Lleyton Hewitt 52

Being mentioned in the same breath as Australian legends Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall he sees as "fantastic" but undeserved.

Andre Agassi, who could have stolen Hewitt's number one spot this week, is described by the bashful Aussie as "one of the greatest players to ever live".

But if Hewitt continues the way he is going, he will increasingly have to accept comparisons with the legends of yesteryear.

By also finishing the year at number one in the entry system rankings, he joined an elite group of three players - Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras - who have stayed at the top for a calendar year.

And the 20-year-old has pledged to revise his busy schedule in order to focus on adding to his Grand Slam collection.

With seemingly limitless reserves of grit and determination, few would bet against him joining the likes of Borg, McEnroe and Sampras as multiple major winners.


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