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Hewitt breezes at Masters Series
Key Biscayne, Mar 27: Lleyton Hewitt breezed into the third round of the WTA and ATP Masters Series event, his bid for a third 2004 title bolstered when two top rivals were blown away.
Key Biscayne, Mar 27: Lleyton Hewitt breezed into the third round of the WTA and ATP Masters Series event, his bid for a third 2004 title bolstered when two top rivals were blown away.
The 23-year-old Australian defeated Sweden's Robin Soderling 6-4, 6-2 in blustery conditions and advanced to a third-round matchup with 50th-rated Romanian Andrei Pavel, who beat Chilean 10th seed Nicolas Massu 7-6 (7/3), 6-1.
"It was an awkward match condition-wise," Hewitt said. "It was windy out there. It was tough conditions. Just had to try and be patient and take your chances when they came and not get too frustrated at times".
Hewitt, ranked 18th, received another break in his portion of the draw when British seventh seed Tim Henman lost to Austrian Jurgen Melzer 7-6 (7/3), 2-6, 7-6 (7/4).
That makes Hewitt the man to beat all the way into the quarter-finals, when he could face Swiss world number one Roger Federer, who is coming off a title last week at Indian Wells and at January's Australian Open .
Hewitt, who has already won titles this year in Sydney and Rotterdam, sought his third consecutive Indian Wells crown but lost in the third round to Argentina's Juan Ignacio Chela 6-3, 4-6, 6-1.
Hewitt needed just 71 minutes to advance, smashing 10 aces and 23 winners past the 48th-rated Swede. Showers began seconds after the finish, hastening Hewitt's departure from the court at the 6.5 million-dollar hardcourt event. "Nine times out of 10 I played it pretty well," Hewitt said. "Had to play to percentages a little bit more than normal I would say. It was hard to go for a lot of shots. I served pretty well considering the conditions.
Hewitt's focus shifts to Pavel, whom he beat last year in the third round at Indian Wells in their only meeting.
"He's a very awkward player," Hewitt said. "He has all the shots in the book. I've just got to go out there and play my game, try to finish my service games as quickly and easily as possible and then I feel like I've got a few chances on his service games".
Bureau Report
"It was an awkward match condition-wise," Hewitt said. "It was windy out there. It was tough conditions. Just had to try and be patient and take your chances when they came and not get too frustrated at times".
Hewitt, ranked 18th, received another break in his portion of the draw when British seventh seed Tim Henman lost to Austrian Jurgen Melzer 7-6 (7/3), 2-6, 7-6 (7/4).
That makes Hewitt the man to beat all the way into the quarter-finals, when he could face Swiss world number one Roger Federer, who is coming off a title last week at Indian Wells and at January's Australian Open .
Hewitt, who has already won titles this year in Sydney and Rotterdam, sought his third consecutive Indian Wells crown but lost in the third round to Argentina's Juan Ignacio Chela 6-3, 4-6, 6-1.
Hewitt needed just 71 minutes to advance, smashing 10 aces and 23 winners past the 48th-rated Swede. Showers began seconds after the finish, hastening Hewitt's departure from the court at the 6.5 million-dollar hardcourt event. "Nine times out of 10 I played it pretty well," Hewitt said. "Had to play to percentages a little bit more than normal I would say. It was hard to go for a lot of shots. I served pretty well considering the conditions.
Hewitt's focus shifts to Pavel, whom he beat last year in the third round at Indian Wells in their only meeting.
"He's a very awkward player," Hewitt said. "He has all the shots in the book. I've just got to go out there and play my game, try to finish my service games as quickly and easily as possible and then I feel like I've got a few chances on his service games".
Bureau Report