World number one Lleyton Hewitt beat Sebastien Grosjean 6-3 6-3 6-4 on Sunday to win the $3.7 million Masters Cup, confirming his position as the hottest player in men's tennis Just two days after he became the youngest man in history to reach the top ranking, Hewitt put the icing on the cake by winning a cool $1.52 million for going through the season-ending tournament undefeated.
The 20-year-old Australian showed no ill-effects from the groin strain that troubled him in Saturday's semifinal win over Juan Carlos Ferrero as he demolished Grosjean in less than two hours.
The Frenchman had only just sneaked into the elite eight-man field by winning the recent Paris masters series and despite losing his first round-robin match to Hewitt, did not drop another set to reach the final. But the Frenchman was unable to make any inroads against Hewitt, whose superior court-speed and athleticism, frustrated Grosjean. The seventh-seed dropped serve five times and made a whopping 47 unforced errors as Hewitt controlled the game from his normal position on the baseline.
Hewitt's victory gave him his sixth title this year and the 12th of his career while his purse of $1.52 million lifted his career earnings to around $3.75 million. Hewitt came into the event as the favourite after winning the U.S. Open in September but still ranked No.2 in the world behind Gustavo Kuerten. Hewitt trailed the Brazilian by 48 points at the start of the week but overtook him on Friday to become the youngest No.1 in history when he won all three of his round-robin matches and Kuerten lost all of his.
By making the final, Grosjean jumped over Patrick Rafter to finish the season seventh overall. He and Hewitt are likely to face each other in a fortnight's time when Australia hosts France in the Davis Cup final in Melbourne.
Bureau Report