Hewitt Rocks the Moroccan
Hewitt Rocks the Moroccan
by Joe Checkler Friday, September 3, 2004
When 2001 US Open champion Lleyton Hewitt finally opened the toolbox
during his first-set tiebreak with Hicham Arazi on Friday, the box was
filled to capacity, right down to the needle-nosed pliers and 3/16
drill bit. Hewitt staved off two set points, then later hit a charging
winner to take the tiebreak, 9-7, closing out a 59-minute set. He turned
to the crowd, yelled "c'mon!" and pounded Arazi from that point on,
winning by 7-6 (9-7), 6-1, 6-2 to advance to the third round of the US Open.
Every shot was working for Hewitt, whether it be the basic, backspinning
backhand or the charging forehand winner. Even when Hewitt was running
the baseline, seemingly under duress, he hit low line-drive forehands
with enough mustard that Arazi could barely handle them.
The players traded breaks in what turned out to be the pivotal first set,
with Hewitt breaking Arazi to square the set up at 5-5. In the tiebreak,
Arazi hit a winner from the net that put him up 6-5, and gave him his
first set point chance.
But Arazi hit the net, making it 6-6. Then, with Hewitt still serving,
the left-handed Arazi took control of a long volley by pounding a forehand
that Hewitt could barely graze. It was set point chance No. 2, and Arazi
was serving. He mishit to resquare the tiebreak at 7-7, and then hit long
to give Hewitt the only chance he would need.
The last two sets took a combined 56 minutes, less than the first set alone.
Hewitt went up 4-0 in the second, winning all eight points of Arazi's first
two service games. He punctuated the first break, a winner from the net,
with a clenched fist. Later, with Arazi serving to stay in the set at 30-40,
Hewitt barely reached a drop shot and perfectly placed a looping underhand
touch shot into the corner, with a helpless Arazi standing on the baseline,
peeking over his shoulder in stunned disbelief.
A disillusioned Arazi, during the first point of the third set, saw Hewitt
mishit a ball straight up in the air, almost as high as the mezzanine level
of Arthur Ashe Stadium. When Arazi went to smash an easy winner he hit the
ball long, and the crowd collectively cringed and sighed. Frustration set
in on the next point, when Arazi hit one wide and screamed "ahh!" Three
points later, Hewitt broke again.
In six sets during the 2004 Open, Hewitt has won all six. He committed just
27 unforced errors in the match to Arazi's 41, and broke serve seven times
to two. His next opponent will be the winner of the Feliciano Lopez-Philipp
Kohlschreiber match.
--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
◆ From: 220.142.66.45
Hewitt 近期熱門文章
PTT體育區 即時熱門文章