Lleyton Hewitt produced an excellent performance to disrupt Andre Agassi’s comeback and take the ATP Siebel Open title. Hewitt saved two match points on his way to a 4-6, 7-6, (8-6) 7-6, (7-4) victory over Agassi who was playing his first tournament since suffering a wrist injury on the eve of the Australian Open in January.
Hewitt’s satisfaction was clear at the end and he said, “It's definitely up there with some of the other big wins in my career, up there with beating Gustavo Kuerten in Davis Cup, (Alberto) Costa (in the 2000 Davis Cup), the US Open and the Tennis Masters Cup. It doesn't get much better than that,” he added.
“I served well at the right time and to stand up on the big points gives me confidence going into big matches. To keep that level up for three tough sets, and to come up with big points in the tie-break was extremely difficult. I believe in myself and I've come through in tough situations in Davis Cup and nothing really worries me. I have a never-say-die attitude. This week has been great and I said before the tournament that I would struggle in the first couple of rounds. Then I stepped it up in the last three rounds.”
Elsewhere, Serena Williams earned her first title of the year by beating Jennifer Capriati 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 in the final of the State Farm Women's Tennis Classic in Scottsdale. The victory moves Serena up three places from ninth to sixth in the world rankings while Capriati’s loss means that Serena’s sister, Venus remains number one.
Filed by Johnny Proby
