‘One of the greatest shots I’ve ever seen’: Teenage son Cruz’s jaw-dropping forehand floors Lleyton Hewitt
Much has been made of the uncanny on court similarities between Cruz and Lleyton Hewitt.
The apple hasn’t fallen too far from the tree in terms of athleticism and fiery intensity, along with the trademark backwards cap and regular cries of “C’mon!”
But there is one area of the game in which Cruz, the rapidly rising 16-year-old, is branching out from his famous father.
READ MORE: ‘Beyond a joke’: Aussies slammed over ‘obvious’ tactics
READ MORE: ‘Nightmare’ for Man United as crucial win goes begging
READ MORE: Root didn’t rate pink-ball cricket. Now he’s its poster boy
It was illustrated to perfection at last month’s NSW Open, where the Hewitts made short work of Hayden Jones and Pavle Marinkov in a doubles match.
“There was a point early on in the match, and it’s sort of been doing the rounds on social media, but it was one of the greatest shots I’ve ever seen,” Hewitt said on Nine’s Today (watch the shot he’s referring to in the video at the top of the page).
“He’s a bit of a shot maker, he has a few weapons out there, and he actually hit a big forehand winner from way off the court, and he’s actually hit it past the net and in between the chair umpire, right next to the ball kid and it actually went in somehow.
Cruz Hewitt lines it up. Twitter
“And I was kind of shaking my head in disbelief because I play the percentages much more and try and grind my opponents down, and he’s gone for this massive flashy shot that ended up paying off.”
Lleyton, 44, came out of retirement to play with his son as a wildcard pairing at the NSW Open.
They bowed out in the quarter-finals against Callum Puttergill and Dane Sweeny.
Lleyton and Cruz Hewitt. Nine
“I have to let him cover most of the court now,” Lleyton quipped.
“He’s 16-years-old, nearly 17, he moves a lot better than me out there, but it was something pretty remarkable actually, for a father and son to get the opportunity to play in an ATP Challenger event on the professional circuit. We had a lot of fun out there.
“Something really special to me because I was able to win this tournament four times as well, so to be out there with your son, and he loves the sport of tennis so much, and it’s given me so much enjoyment over the years, it’s a great memory we’ll always have.”
Lleyton Hewitt, Cruz Hewitt and Bec Hewitt arrive to the 2024 Newcombe Medal. Getty Images for Tennis Australi
Cruz is building towards another crack at the Australian Open junior boys’ title in January.
He lost in the second round to No.1 seed Jan Kumstat this year.
Lleyton is already salivating at the prospect of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz going at it at in the men’s singles.
“One and two, they’ve been dominating the sport for the last couple of years, and Alcaraz will be going for a career Grand Slam if he’s able to hold up the trophy at Melbourne Park, so it’s something really exciting for January.”
