Posted at 6:39 a.m., Thursday, January 3, 2008
Tennis: Hewitt reaches Australian hardcourt quarters
Associated Press
ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) _ Lleyton Hewitt won 16 of the first 19 points to take a 4-0 lead, setting up a 6-2, 6-2 win over Jose Acasuso today that put him into the quarterfinals of the Australian men's hardcourt.Hewitt's only blemish was double-faulting on his first match point.
The Australian first won his hometown tournament 10 years ago in his debut as a professional.
Acasuso's biggest win over Hewitt was during a 2006 Davis Cup semifinal match in Buenos Aires, when a 1-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory helped Argentina to a 5-0 win over Australia.
"He's such a dangerous opponent and if you play into his hands ... he can really dictate play," Hewitt said. "It was a matter of me stepping up to the plate tonight and going after him.
"I felt like I was aggressive at the start, which was good, put a bit of doubt into his mind, especially on his service games."
In other second-round matches Thursday, third-seeded Jarkko Nieminen of Finland beat Canadian Frank Dancevic 6-4, 6-1; American Vince Spadea defeated Mischa Zverev of Germany 6-4, 7-5; and France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat Ernests Gulbis of Latvia 6-3, 6-2.
