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The Honolulu Advertiser
Updated at 5:02 a.m., Sunday, January 18, 2009

Tennis: Hewitt: leave Australian Open in January

By DENNIS PASSA
Associated Press

AUSTRALIAN OPEN DRAW

At Melbourne Park

Melbourne, Australia

Jan. 19-Feb. 1

wc-wild card, q-qualifier, ll-lucky loser

Men

Rafael Nadal (1), Spain, vs. Christophe Rochus, Belgium

Florent Serra, France, vs. Roko Karanusic, Croatia

Eduardo Schwank, Argentina, vs. Tommy Haas, Germany

q-Flavio Cipolla, Italy, vs. Dmitry Tursunov (25), Russia

Richard Gasquet (24), France, vs. Diego Junqueira, Argentina

Vince Spadea, United States, vs. wc-Denis Istomin, Uzbekistan

Guillermo Canas, Argentina, vs. q-Dieter Kindlmann, Germany

Lleyton Hewitt, Australia, vs. Fernando Gonzalez (13), Chile

Gael Monfils (12), France, vs. Martin Vassallo Arguello, Argentina

Mikhail Youzhny, Russia, vs. Stefan Koubek, Austria

Andrey Golubev, Kazakhstan, vs. Fabio Fognini, Italy

Nicolas Massu, Chile, vs. Nicolas Almagro (17), Spain

Ivo Karlovic (25), Croatia, vs. Daniel Gimeno-Traver, Spain

q-Wayne Odesnik, United States, vs. Mario Ancic, Croatia

Chris Guccione, Australia, vs. Nicolas Devilder, France

Pablo Andujar, Spain, vs. Gilles Simon (6), Italy

Andy Murray (4), Britain, vs. Andrei Pavel, Romania

Teimuraz Gabashvili, Russia, vs. Marcel Granollers, Spain

q-Andreas Beck, Germany, vs. wc-Colin Ebelthite, Australia

Kei Nishikori, Japan, vs. Jurgen Melzer (31), Austria

Radek Stepanek (22), Czech Republic, vs. Nicolas Lapentti, Ecuador

q-Michael Berrer, Germany, vs. wc-Carsten Ball, Australia

Sergiy Stakhovsky, Ukraine, vs. Arnaud Clement, France

wc-Adrian Mannarino, France, vs. Fernando Verdasco (14), Spain

James Blake (9), United States, vs. ll-Frank Dancevic, Canada

q-Sebastien de Chaunac, France, vs. Steve Darcis, Belgium

Albert Montanes, Spain, vs. Ernests Gulbis, Latvia

q-Peter Polansky, Canada, vs. Igor Andreev (18), Russia

Rainer Schuettler (30), Germany, vs. q-Dudi Sela, Israel

Victor Hanescu, Romania, vs. Jan Hernych, Czech Republic

Ivan Ljubicic, Croatia, vs. Igor Kunitsyn, Russia

Juan Monaco, Argentina, vs. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (5), France

Andy Roddick (7), United States, vs. q-Bjorn Rehnquist, Sweden

q-Xavier Malisse, Belgium, vs. Michael Llodra, France

Juan Carlos Ferrero, Spain, vs. Fabrice Santoro, France

Sam Querrey, United States, vs. Philipp Kohlschreiber (32), Germany

Tommy Robredo (21), Spain, vs. Bobby Reynolds, United States

Alberto Martin, Spain, vs. Viktor Troicki, Serbia

Thomaz Bellucci, Brazil, vs. Yen-hsun Lu, Taiwan

Marc Gicquel, France, vs. David Nalbandian (10), Argentina

Robin Soderling (16), Sweden, vs. Robert Kendrick, United States

Julien Benneteau, France, vs. Marcos Baghdatis, Cyprus

Simone Bolelli, Italy, vs. Kristof Vliegen, Belgium

wc-Samuel Groth, Australia, vs. Mardy Fish (23), United States

Paul-Henri Mathieu (28), France, vs. Jarkko Nieminen, Finland

Taylor Dent, United States, vs. ll-Amer Delic, United States

Jeremy Chardy, France, vs. Marcos Daniel, Brazil

q-Andrea Stoppini, Italy, vs. Novak Djokovic (3), Serbia

Juan Martin del Potro (8), Argentina, vs. Mischa Zverev, Germany

q-Lamine Ouahab, Algeria, vs. q-Florian Mayer, Germany

Potito Starace, Italy, vs. wc-Bernard Tomic, Australia

Gilles Muller, Luxembourg, vs. Feliciano Lopez (27), Spain

Marin Cilic (19), Croatia, vs. Kevin Anderson, South Africa

Oscar Hernandez, Spain, vs. Janko Tipsarevic, Serbia

q-Dominik Hrbaty, Slovakia, vs. wc-John Isner, United States

Denis Gremelmayr, Germany, vs. David Ferrer (11), Spain

Stanislas Wawrinka (15), Switzerland, vs. Ivo Minar, Czech Republic

q-Bjorn Phau, Germany, vs. wc-Brydan Klein, Australia

Brian Dabul, Argentina, vs. Philipp Petzschner, Germany

Robby Ginepri, United States, vs. Tomas Berdych (20), Czech Republic

Marat Safin (26), Russia, vs. Ivan Navarro, Spain

Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Spain, vs. Agustin Calleri, Argentina

q-Evgeny Korolev, Russia, vs. Carlos Moya, Spain

Andreas Seppi, Italy, vs. Roger Federer (2), Switzerland<

Women

Jelena Jankovic (1), Serbia, vs. Yvonne Meusburger, Austria

Kirsten Flipkens, Belgium, vs. Rossana de Los Rios, Paraguay

Nathalie Dechy, France, vs. q-Viktoriya Kutuzova, Ukraine

q-Stephanie Dubois, Canada, vs. Ai Sugiyama (26), Japan

Sybille Bammer (24), Austria, vs. Lucie Safarova, Czech Republic

Petra Cetkovska, Czech Republic, vs. Marina Erakovic, New Zealand

q-Karolina Sprem, Croatia, vs. Tsvetana Pironkova, Bulgaria

Melanie South, Britain, vs. Marion Bartoli (16), France

Nadia Petrova (10), Russia, vs. Yaroslava Shvedova, Kazakhstan

Sania Mirza, India, vs. Marta Domachowska, Poland

Karin Knapp, Italy, vs. wc-Monika Wejnert, Australia

Galina Voskoboeva, Kazakhstan, vs. Agnes Szavay (23), Hungary

Maria Kirilenko (27), Russia, vs. Sara Errani, Italy

Monica Niculescu, Romania, vs. q-Katie O'Brien, Britain

Maria Elena Camerin, Italy, vs. Edina Gallovits, Romania

Magdalena Rybarikova, Slovakia, vs. Vera Zvonareva (7), Russia

Dinara Safina (3), Russia, vs. Alla Kudryavtseva, Russia

Ekaterina Makarova, Russia, vs. Aravane Rezai, France

q-Julia Schruff, Germany, vs. Patricia Mayr, Austria

q-Kimiko Date Krumm, Japan, vs. Kaia Kanepi (25), Estonia

Daniela Hantuchova (19), Slovakia, vs. Casey Dellacqua, Australia

Jill Craybas, United States, vs. Mathilde Johansson, France

Andrea Petkovic, Germany, vs. q-Kathrin Woerle, Germany

Mariya Koryttseva, Ukraine, vs. Alize Cornet (15), France

Caroline Wozniacki (11), Denmark, vs. Shahar Peer, Israel

Virginia Ruano Pascual, Spain, vs. Mariana Duque Marino, Colombia

wc-Jelena Dokic, Australia, vs. Tamira Paszek, Austria

Anne Keothavong, Britain, vs. Anna Chakvetadze (17), Russia

Alisa Kleybanova (29), Russia, vs. Sofia Arvidsson, Sweden

Stephanie Cohen-Aloro, France, vs. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova, Czech Republic

Yanina Wickmayer, Belgium, vs. q-Alberta Brianti, Italy

Julia Goerges, Germany, vs. Ana Ivanovic (5), Serbia

Venus Williams (6), United States, vs. Angelique Kerber, Germany

Carla Suarez Navarro, Spain, vs. Roberta Vinci, Italy

q-Melanie Oudin, United States, vs. Akgul Amanmuradova, Uzbekistan

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, Spain, vs. Tamarine Tanasugarn (32), Thailand

Anabel Medina Garrigues (21), Spain, vs. wc-Isabella Holland, Australia

Elena Vesnina, Russia, vs. Julie Coin, France

wc-Jessica Moore, Australia, vs. wc-Christina McHale, United States

Mara Santangelo, Italy, vs. Flavia Pennetta (12), Italy

Patty Schnyder (14), Switzerland, vs. wc-Kristina Mladenovic, France

Jarmila Gajdosova, Australia, vs. Virginie Razzano, France

Hsieh Su-wei, Taiwan, vs. Chan Yung-jan, Taiwan

q-Chanelle Scheepers, South Africa, vs. Dominika Cibulkova (18), Slovakia

Aleksandra Wozniak (30), Canada, vs. Sabine Lisicki, Germany

Samantha Stosur, Australia, vs. Klara Zakopalova, Czech Republic

Vera Dushevina, Russia, vs. Iveta Benesova, Czech Republic

Kristina Barrois, Germany, vs. Elena Dementieva (4), Russia

Svetlana Kuznetsova (8), Russia, vs. Anastasia Rodionova, Australia

Tatjana Malek, Germany, vs. Ayumi Morita, Japan

Nicole Vaidisova, Czech Republic, vs. Severine Bremond, France

wc-Olivia Rogowska, Australia, vs. Alona Bondarenko (31), Ukraine

Zheng Jie (22), China, vs. Camille Pin, France

Sorana Cirstea, Romania, vs. Melinda Czink, Hungary

Ekaterina Bychkova, Russia, vs. Lourdes Dominguez Lino, Spain

Kateryna Bondarenko, Ukraine, vs. Agnieszka Radwanska (9), Poland

Victoria Azarenka (13), Belarus, vs. Petra Kvitova, Czech Republic

Tathiana Garbin, Italy, vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russia

q-Elena Baltacha, Britain, vs. Anna-Lena Groenefeld, Germany

Olga Govortsova, Belarus, vs. Amelie Mauresmo (20), France

Francesca Schiavone (28), Italy, vs. Peng Shuai, China

Nuria Llagostera Vives, Spain, vs. q-Sesil Karatantcheva, Bulgaria

Anastasiya Yakimova, Belarus, vs. Gisela Dulko, Argentina

wc-Yuan Meng, China, vs. Serena Williams (2), United States

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MELBOURNE, Australia — Lleyton Hewitt would like to see the Australian Open left where it is — two weeks in January.

"I think as an Australian, it's probably the ideal time," Hewitt said Sunday. "This is the time that I've always known it as the Australian Open, the dates that I've always come to, since I was coming here as a young kid to watch."

Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray have suggested this week that it might be better to shift the Australian Open to February to allow for a longer preparation for the first Grand Slam through an extended period of leadup tournaments.

Organizers of the Australian Open don't want to move the tournament back because the existing slot coincides with the national summer holidays and doesn't conflict with any other major sporting events.

Hewitt agrees.

"It fits in so well with the school holidays and getting kids out there," Hewitt said. "I think sport-wise there's not a lot on at this time of the year either, so it sort of stands out by itself."

Hewitt suggested that it can't be all that difficult playing here.

"It's obviously early in the year (but) a lot of overseas players have prepared well enough to win it in the past," he said, smiling.

FOUR SEASONS IN A DAY: The forecast for the first two days of the Australian Open is for mostly sunny skies and a high of 95 degrees. But Melbourne's fickle weather often sees extreme temperature fluctuations and wild changes in the weather — four seasons in a day.

Britain's Andy Murray, who comes into the tournament as one of the favorites because of his strong recent play, spent nearly a month training in Florida to get used to the expected warm temperatures at Melbourne Park.

"I think you need to be prepared for all the different sort of changes in conditions," Murray said. "Some days it can be very, very windy, some days very hot, the next day it can be pretty cool, and it changes the speed of the court as well. So you need to adapt your game a little bit depending on the weather."

Murray said he's not surprised the two-week tournament often results in a higher than usual number of injuries to players.

"You need to come in having had a good offseason and be physically prepared," Murray said. "If you take a bit too much time off and maybe don't train in a warm climate in December, it's tough to play the five-set matches very well."

Venus Williams, who has seven Grand Slam singles titles — five at Wimbledon and two at the U.S. Open — says she knows why it's more difficult to win here.

"Just starting off the blocks at the beginning of the year, just trying to recover mentally and physically from that last year," Williams says. "That turnaround is always so quick. When you also start the year off, you can also get injured quickly because of just getting your body back into it.

"It's definitely one of the toughest ones to win because of all those different factors."

A TRIO OF ROLE MODELS: Jelena Jankovic figures she, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic give Serbian tennis fans three role models.

"In Serbia we don't have the best facilities in the world, especially in wintertime it's very hard for to us train," No. 1-ranked Jankovic said.

"But we are really hungry and motivated to do well. The three of us that have achieved and came to the top of the tennis game, we all did it in different ways going to different places and really wanted to become the best that we can be."

She says that Ivanovic, last year's French Open winner who is ranked fifth, and Djokovic, who won last year's Australian Open for his first Grand Slam, will help create a future group of top players from Serbia.

"I believe from our achievement we can push and motivate the other generations, the younger generations, to come after us," she said. "If, for example, they can think if Jelena or Ana and Novak have done it, why can we not do it?"