Former Australian tennis player Lleyton Hewitt’s son, Cruz, clinched his first Wimbledon juniors draw win on Sunday, July 6. In his first Wimbledon Juniors appearance, the 16-year-old won his Round of 64 contest against Savva Rybkin convincingly in straight sets 6-1, 6-2.
After his first-round victory, Cruz will now face Finland’s Oskari Paldanius in the next round, scheduled to take place on Monday, July 7. Additionally, Hewitt’s son will also compete in the Round of 32 of the doubles format, along with Mark Ceban, and they will face Kerem Yilmaz and Haydar Cem Gokpinar.
One of the major striking features of the 16-year-old Cruz was his resemblance on the court to his dad, Lleyton Hewitt, who won the Wimbledon Championships in 2002 when he defeated Argentina’s David Nalbandian in the finals. Cruz carried a laid back cap, similar to his father, and also carried rackets and polos of the same sponsors as Hewitt.
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The Wimbledon Juniors is Cruz's 3rd junior Grand Slam competition this year after the Australian Open and the French Open, where he was eliminated in the second and first rounds, respectively. Notably, he also played the qualifiers of the senior Australian Open but lost to Nikoloz Basilashvili in straight sets 6-1, 6-4.
Former Wimbledon winner Lleyton Hewitt heaped praise on his son Cruz after the latter's Australian Open loss
Former Wimbledon winner Lleyton Hewitt shared his honest impression about his son, Cruz's prowess, after the latter's defeat at the Australian Open qualifiers earlier this year. In an interview, Hewitt expressed his excitement to watch his son play at the competition against the likes of a former World No.16, Nikoloz Basilashvili.
The 44-year-old also mentioned that his son has several role models, such as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, to look up to and prepare better. He said (via Daily Express):
"It's a long journey. I was excited to watch him play. He had a tough draw playing Basilashvili, a former No.16 and a guy who played finals at Indian Wells. For Cruz to be around these guys, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Alex de Minaur.... what unbelievable role models for him to see how they prepare."
Cruz's father, Lleyton Hewitt, was one of the most profound players during his active years in the sport. Besides his Wimbledon victory in 2002, Hewitt also won the US Open in the doubles format in 2000, and just a year later, he won in the singles event after defeating Pete Sampras.
