June 9-16 2008

quarterfinals defeated by Novak Djokovic 6-2 6-2

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Lleyton Hewitt's bid for a record fifth Queen's title was halted by Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals on Friday.
Hewitt, 27, was hoping to pull clear of Andy Roddick, John McEnroe and Boris Becker, who all own four titles at the pre-Wimbledon warm-up event, but the Australian will have to wait another year after being dismantled 6-2, 6-2.
Djokovic has become a serious thorn in Hewitt's side. The Serb beat him en route to winning the Australian Open earlier this year and also knocked out him out at Wimbledon in 2007.

Former Wimbledon champion Hewitt is still not fully recovered from a hip injury and it showed as he was over-powered in his first quarter-final since the first week of the season. Djokovic, who now plays either David Nalbandian or Richard Gasquet, was able to dicate the tempo of the match by moving Hewitt out of position with some searing groundstrokes. He broke in the second game of the first set and never gave Hewitt a glimpse of a chance after that.

Unable to impose himself from the baseline, Hewitt started to take too many risks and made a series of unforced errors as he was broken again to fall 4-1 behind. The Australian had recovered from the same deficit against Paul-Henri Mathieu in the last round but this was a different class of opponent and Djokovic served out the set with ease. Hewitt was swept away by the whirlwind as broke early in the second set when his opponent sent a backhand way over the baseline. Hewitt's fierce competitive streak ensured he wouldn't surrender without a fight and he earned three break points at 3-2 down. But Djokovic was resolute enough to hold on and he broke Hewitt again in the seventh game to clinch the win.

 

Rd 3 defeated Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4 6-4

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Australia's Lleyton Hewitt has reached the quarter-finals of the ATP event at The Queen's Club in London with a straight-sets victory over Paul-Henri Mathieu. 

Hewitt, the 11th seed, overcame a poor start to beat the No.7-seeded Frenchman 6-4 6-4 in their third-round match. "He always comes out firing, every time I've played him in the past," Hewitt said. "It was kind of like weathering the storm out there a little bit, but I knew I was going to get my opportunities. "That's why he's not top five, top ten in the world, nine times out of ten, he can't keep that standard up for a whole match."

World No.17 Mathieu raced to a 3-0 lead, but Hewitt emerged for the sixth game in a fired-up mood and blew his opponent away when he broke him to love. Hewitt, ranked 30th, did not concede a point on his next service game either and broke Mathieu again in the ninth game to earn the right to serve for the set. In the opening game of the second set, the Australian broke Mathieu again with a blistering cross-court backhand and he saved a break in the next game, despite struggling with his serve. Mathieu fought off another break on match point, but he was just prolonging the inevitable.

In the following game, Hewitt sent down three impressive serves to claim as many match points, converting the first with an ace. Four-time Queen's champion Hewitt has won all three of his matches in straight sets this year at his traditional warm-up tournament for Wimbledon starting on June 23. "Today I felt like from 4-1 down, I was able to turn it around," Hewitt said. "It was a pretty good result ... it was a matter of just hanging in there and trying to get my serve on track, get that first break back, then try and build from there."

Hewitt will play Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic in the quarters.

 

Rd 2 defeated Xavier Malisse 6-3 6-2

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LLEYTON Hewitt advanced to the third round of the Queen's Club tournament in London with a comfortable victory over Belgian wildcard Xavier Malisse today. He is the only Australian left in the singles draw after Chris Guccione lost his second-round match.

Hewitt, the No. 11 seed, advanced to the third round with a comfortable 6-3 6-2 win over Belgian wildcard Xavier Malisse. "It was a pretty good match overall,'' Hewitt said.  "I didn't lose my serve against a good returner out there who works the ball around extremely well.
"It was good to get up an early break, though, in both sets, which was important.''  Hewitt fought off two break points when serving for the match, one with an unreturnable serve and the next with a clever lob over Malisse's head.

The Australian converted his first match point when Malisse netted a backhand. Hewitt, whose next opponent is French No.7 seed Paul-Henri Mathieu, was pleased with his form going from clay to grass.

"You get more and more comfortable with each match, for sure,'' he said. "I felt like as soon as I got here, and even with all the changes, I was still hitting the ball well in practice sets, but you've got to go out there and do it in match situations, which is so much different.  "For me, that's been a huge bonus, to get these couple of matches under my belt, and another one tomorrow.'' 
Hewitt and Guccione lost a hard-fought second-round doubles match against sixth-seeded pair Max Mirnyi of Belarus and Briton Jamie Murray, who won 6-7 (6-8) 7-6 (7-5) 10-5.
 

 

Rd 1 Lleyton defeated Josh Goodall 6-4 6-4

Former World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt began his quest for a record fifth title at The Artois Championships with a comfortable 6-4, 6-4 victory over British wild card Josh Goodall on the opening day at The Queen’s Club.

After suffering a surprise defeat at the hands of Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in his opening match a year ago, the former Wimbledon and US Open champion was pleased to make a winning start this time around.

“It's different when you get in your first match on a different surface,” said Hewitt. “That was a good knock because I felt like I served smartly throughout the match, hit my spots well when I needed to. On my returns, I felt like I was putting a lot more pressure on him than he was on my service games.”

Hewitt, seeded No. 11 this year, needed just 72 minutes to overcome the challenge posed by Goodall, the 22-year-old from Basingstoke whose winless streak in ATP matches now extends to seven.

The 27-year-old from Adelaide, making his 11th consecutive appearance at The Queen’s Club, is looking to add to the titles he captured here in 2000-02 and 2006. Another victory this week would see the Australian surpass the record he currently shares with Andy Roddick, John McEnroe and Boris Becker, and he says he is excited to be back at The Artois Championships for another shot at the title.

“I've always thought they're as good a grass [courts] as I've ever played on,” said Hewitt. “Amazing how good a nick they're always in every year we come back here. I've always had a lot of success here, which has been nice, as well.”

For Goodall, who fired 13 aces in his first grass court match of the season, there was plenty to take back to his training base in Sutton. “I was reasonably happy,” said Goodall. “Obviously, my first match on grass this year, against Lleyton Hewitt, one of the top grass court players in the last decade. I was a little bit tentative at the start in a few parts of my game. Other parts, I was really happy, my serve and my volleying. That hasn't been my game style, and that's what I'm trying to work more towards. Overall, I think there were more positives than negatives.

Interviews

June 9, June 11, June 12
 

June 12, 2008


 

Lleyton Hewitt


LONDON, ENGLAND

L. HEWITT/P. Mathieu
6-4, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Pleased with that?
LLEYTON HEWITT: It was good. He always comes out firing every time I've played him in the past. When I've seen him play at his best, he's a great ball-striker off both sides. You know, when he's serving well, it's tough because he puts a lot of pressure always on your service games. He's a very good return-of-serve player and moves well.
It was kind of like weathering the storm out there a little bit. But I knew I was going to get my opportunities. That's why he's not top five, top ten in the world. Nine times out of ten, he can't keep that standard up for a whole match.

Q. Three matches in, how do you feel you're progressing?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, not too bad. I got through all in straight sets so far. Malisse and Mathieu are both dangerous opponents. They're both extremely flashy and good ball strikers. Yeah, to beat those guys. Today I felt like from 4-1 down, I was able to turn it around. You know, I served extremely well. I put pressure on nearly every one of his service games from then on in. It was a pretty good result.

Q. How big a part does confidence play in your sport? Lots of other sports, they talk about when you're confident, the better they do.
LLEYTON HEWITT: I think confidence has a lot to do with winning. You watch a guy like Federer, Nadal, these guys, even Djokovic now, when you are confident, win a lot of big matches, you get in those situations, you're sort of on autopilot out there. Especially Federer backs himself every time when he gets in a tight situation. That just comes from self-belief and confidence. He's been able to do it against the best guys for a number of years now. It's second nature to him.

Q. Obviously you had your time as world No. 1. Towards the end of that there must be a period where somebody chips an odd result against you here or there. That's happened to Federer this year. Will that make an impact on him, do you think?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Hard to say. Obviously a guy like Djokovic is young. Nadal is young, but he's been around for a lot of years now. Djokovic coming up, he's played pretty good tennis against Roger when they've played on all surfaces.
You know, you watch these young guys, even Andy Murray has played well against him, a young guy. But, yeah, Roger still does it in the big tournaments when it really counts. That's why he's still No. 1.

Q. I hate to throw it back when you're trying to build your confidence up at the moment. Can you talk about what it feels like when that bit of invincibility you built up is suddenly being chipped away?
LLEYTON HEWITT: It's hard to say. The game always keeps improving. For me, even when I was No. 1, I felt like there were still areas of my game I could work on and improve. Something I've been trying to do over the last couple years, but had hiccups with a couple of niggling injuries that I haven't been able to put those match, get it back to back really. Roger took the game to a new level. I was No. 1. Roddick was No. 1 for a couple of months. Roger has really taken the game to a new level since then. Rafa is extremely unlucky not to have gotten to No. 1.

Q. On the basis that nothing is forever, Rafa is the next in line to make the big challenge?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Personally I'd hope so because he's a great guy. What he's done, how he plays on all surfaces, he deserves to be world No. 1. There's no doubt that his name should be up there with the greats of the game.

Q. Roddick today said you would still be a big threat at Wimbledon. Do you feel that yourself?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I feel like I'm definitely capable of playing against those big guys. I know what it takes to win seven matches there, as well. I feel over five sets that's where the best of me comes, in the Grand Slams. That's what I play for. My best tennis always comes out in those situations over five sets.
Yeah, I'll go in there quietly confident, but hopefully I can get a few more matches here.

Q. Does defeat hurt you as much now as when you were almost invincible?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I think so. It's probably more so a couple of my losses this year have been sort of through playing injured, not being a hundred percent out there. That's probably more disheartening in a lot of ways because I felt like I've been hitting the ball extremely well, but haven't been a hundred percent out there to be able to compete. For me competing is one of my biggest assets.
Yeah, that's the tough thing.

Q. When you used to go out there as world No. 1, can I assume you thought you would win the match?
LLEYTON HEWITT: I go out in every match and think I can win the match (smiling).

Q. You still maintain that?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Absolutely. I think I've done it enough times against the best players in the world. Last year I was one point away from beating Nadal on clay and one point away from beating Djokovic at Wimbledon and a couple points away of beating Federer at Cincinnati on hard courts. When I put it all together, I'm not too far away. Got to get my body right first. That would make life a lot easier.

Q. The Andy seems to get the odd injury cropping up now and then.
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, he was unlucky. That wrist injury, what he did last year, it was very unlucky. It was like Becker at Wimbledon a few years back. He just hit the wrong shot at the wrong time and did his wrist. That's a pretty unlucky injury for him.

Q. With today's match, 1-4 down, what do you think actually clicked in? What turned it around?
LLEYTON HEWITT: I started serving a little bit better, for sure. Even in the first game of the match, I had breakpoint, then I had 30-All and deuce in his second service game of the match. I knew I was going to get opportunities on his service games. It was a matter of just hanging in there and trying to get my serve on track, get that first break back, then try and build from there.

Q. 2002, winning here, going to Wimbledon and winning there, seem like yesterday or a long time ago?
LLEYTON HEWITT: A bit of both. Some days it's different. When I come back here, it doesn't feel like that long ago, no. But probably when you're away, you're grinding out on the tour, it feels like a while away.

Q. When you pull up in the car at Wimbledon, what do you feel when you get out? Another year has gone by or it's still very special?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Both of those. Amazing how quickly the years go by nowadays. For me, it's one of my favorite tournaments, as I said, if not my favorite, Wimbledon. I love it. It's built more and more over the years. Since I obviously started doing well there and won matches, you really feel the tradition walking in there. To me it's one of the greatest places to play tennis.
Yeah, it's one of the reasons you keep playing the game, too.

Q. Is the locker room attendant the same bloke from years ago?
LLEYTON HEWITT: There's a new one that's taken over in the members locker room. There's a couple Aussies in there, as well, which is nice.

Q. A place you go to and think, I'm home?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, pretty much. I feel pretty comfortable when I get there.

Q. You look at the next round. Obviously you don't know who you have. Do you look at the two players individually? You'd have another crack at Djokovic on grass.
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, he's probably improved from last year at Wimbledon. He's a great all-court player nowadays. He comes in well, has a big first serve. I lost to him at the Aussie Open as well. I know how he plays. It's a matter of me going out and executing against him. Tipsarevic is very hot and cold. He's flashy. I think he beat Murray here a couple years ago on grass. Grass definitely isn't his worst surface. He moves extremely well and can generate a lot of pace from both sides.

Q. Think back to the Davis Cup match against him?
LLEYTON HEWITT: A little bit. That was the last time I played him. That was on one of the slowest clay courts I ever played on. It will be a totally different matchup to that.

End of FastScripts
 

June 11, 2008


 

Lleyton Hewitt


LONDON, ENGLAND

L. HEWITT/X. Malisse
6-3, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Lleyton.

Q. How do you think you shaped up today?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, it was a pretty good match overall. I didn't lose my serve against, you know, a good returner out there who works the ball around extremely well. He's a great shot-maker. He mixes it up with slice and also goes for his shots, both cross-court and down the line.
It was good to get up an early break, though, in both sets, which was important.

Q. When you actually come here, do you feel you're at home? You won it so many times. Lovely place, straight into the groove?
LLEYTON HEWITT: A little bit. It's always hard, though, you know, when you haven't played on grass for 12 months, to come out straight. There's no bigger difference than going from a clay court to a grass court. You know, not just the moving aspect, but tactics. It puts a lot more pressure on your serve and return game than clay court. Serve and return is sort of just starting the point. There's a lot of different tactics out there, as well. So it's always going to take a little bit of time.
But, you know, I'm fortunate that I felt like as soon as I get here on the grass, I'm always hitting the ball pretty well. And my movement's always, you know, pretty good as well, which is lucky.

Q. You adjust so quickly; you've done it for years. Why is that?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I'm not really sure. For me there's no real answer. You know, I don't know. I always really look forward to this time. Whether that has something to do with it, I don't know. I think a lot of top guys these days have a pretty positive outlook on the grass. Maybe years before, some of those good clay court players didn't always look forward to playing here on the grass I think for this month. Yeah, maybe that had something to do with it.
I've always had a good outlook, positive outlook, to come here and succeed and do well.

Q. What makes you a good grass court player?
LLEYTON HEWITT: I'm not sure. I think if I'm serving well I can be tough to beat because, you know, my return of serve is one of my biggest strengths. So if I can put enough pressure on my opponents, they're going to have to serve extremely well to keep holding their serves all day.
Grass is a tough game to play, though, because you get those half chances and you really have to take them on this surface. If you're playing a big server that's serving extremely well, sometimes those chances are tough to take.
Yeah, over the years I've been able to put a lot of pressure on my opponents with my return of serve. If I serve well, it makes life a lot easier.

Q. Have you had to change your game plan since you won Wimbledon or is it a question of executing the same game plan successfully?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, the game plan, me for grass, really hasn't changed a whole heap. I continue to try and improve, come to the net, play a bit more of an all-court game, just add another dimension to my game - on every surface, not just grass. Hopefully that can take me to the next level and keep improving.
So, yeah, that's obviously one area that Rochey and I have been working on. But it's not just for grass; it's sort of through clay and hard court as well.

Q. Has grass court tennis slowed since you came on tour?
LLEYTON HEWITT: It's hard to say. The game's probably changed. There was a lot more serve-volleying, chip-chargers out there when I first started. Nine times out of ten now, you're going to have guys serve and stay back. Still got a lot of big serves out there. Even if they are serving and staying back, they're looking for that first ball to really punish - a mid-court forehand normally.
The actual pace of the game probably hasn't changed that much. It's more, you know, the style of play. There's so many good returners out there these days, it's hard to serve every point.

Q. Can you speculate as to why that change has happened?
LLEYTON HEWITT: As I said, I think there's so many good returners. There's a lot better returners than there has been throughout the years. Someone like Tim Henman, as good a serve-volleyer as he was, even the last couple years of his career, found it hard to serve-volley all the time consistently, even on a grass court.

Q. In that week or two weeks that you started to hit again before the French, did you start to hit on hard or did you go to the red clay courts at Homebush and start on that?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I only hit like once, I think. It was on a clay court in Sydney, not at Homebush. That was once, but it was more sort of stroking the ball. At that stage I probably wasn't really a hundred percent sure whether I was going to be able to play the French or not.

Q. Still only had a couple of matches on the grass. Are you feeling with each one you're more comfortable or is it still new surface, got to settle?
LLEYTON HEWITT: You get more and more comfortable with each match, for sure. I felt like as soon as I got here, and even with all the changes, I was still hitting the ball well, yeah, in practice sets and that. But you've got to go out there and do it in match situations, which is so much different than practice.
For me, that's been a huge bonus, to get these couple of matches under my belt, and another one tomorrow.

Q. Playing the doubles obviously helps with that. Is that something you might aim to put together that combination, you and Gooch, for the Olympics?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, not sure yet. I really haven't even thought about doubles at the Olympics. Yeah, I don't actually know if Gooch is in directly or not. I think he's about borderline at the moment. Tennis Australia will have to work out what they think the best options are, who's going to get in. I don't think Gooch and I would probably get in on our own rankings, I don't think, into doubles at the Olympics.
Yeah, right at the moment it's probably still Paul and I would be the best option.

Q. The doubles, in addition to getting more matches on, match practice, is it also a point to give Fitzgerald another option for Davis Cup?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, a little bit. For me, this one here at Queen's is probably more so to get a couple more matches, more serve and return, serve-volley a little bit, play different shots. Yeah, you don't get to play that many matches in a match situation on grass. For me it's trying to sharpen up areas of my game leading into Wimbledon.
For me, I still feel like I can teach Gooch a lot, as well, on the court. So for me I enjoy playing with him and I think he responds to playing with me a lot better than maybe a lot of other players. So, yeah, that's a positive.
Yeah, maybe down the track, if we do play more matches, we will be another option. But right at the moment, I think Fitzy's got enough faith in me and Handles for Davis Cup.

Q. Is that important for you, because playing for your country is so important? Is it good to give something back in the sense you can help foster Gooch's career a bit?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Gooch is obviously the standout player we've got coming up. He's the most likely opportunity to get into the top 50, top 20 in the world. Davis Cup-wise, when I'm gone, Handles is gone, he's going to be playing a lot of the matches as well.
Anything that I can pass on to him is an extra bonus, I hope for him and not only his career, but for him and Davis Cup.

End of FastScripts
 

June 9, 2008


 

Lleyton Hewitt


LONDON, ENGLAND

L. HEWITT/J. Goodall
6-4, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Lleyton.

Q. Pretty comfortable match for you.
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, it's always a little bit tough first match on grass. The court on the first day hasn't had any play on it either. A little bit greener out there. Yeah, you just got to be careful with your footing a little bit. That's probably the biggest thing.
But, yeah, he had a big serve. He was playing on the edge, though, the whole time I felt, going for a lot of big second serves. Today a lot of them went in. Other days a lot of them could have missed.

Q. Good to get the early break.
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, it was good in the first set. I've been returning really well in practice. I returned well in Paris on the clay, as well. Yeah, I've been seeing the ball well.
Yeah, it's still different when you get in your first match on a different surface. But, yeah, that was a good knock because I felt like I served smartly throughout the match, hit my spots well when I needed to. On my returns, I felt like I was putting a lot more pressure on him than he was on my service games.

Q. Grass courts here are regarded by some as the best in the world. What do you think about that?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, in the past I've always thought they're as good a grass as I've ever played on. Amazing how good a nick they're always in every year we come back here. I've always had a lot of success here, which has been nice, as well.

Q. Having been out for a while, I know you obviously prefer to be fully fit, but is there a bonus, do you come to this season feeling particularly fresh?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, not sure. I guess probably by Wimbledon, you know, some of the other guys could have played a lot of matches on the clay and, yeah, be a little bit tired I guess after a long clay court stretch, then going into another Grand Slam two weeks after the French.
But I'm really looking forward to it. Wimbledon's one of my favorite tournaments of the year, if not my favorite. So, yeah, I love this month of the year. You know, I think I always go in with a good attitude, as well, which helps.

Q. How do you feel physically at the moment?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Pretty good. Yeah, not a hundred percent. Still, yeah, battling the hip injury a little bit. But, you know, just trying to get through it and hopefully not aggravate it any more.

Q. Because you said you struggled a little bit after a long match in Paris, didn't you?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I struggled. Yeah, that night I was struggling to walk a little bit (smiling).
Yeah, that comes with playing five sets, as well. But, yeah, throughout the match, I couldn't really expect a whole heap going into Paris anyway, not playing on clay for 12 months. To go out and play two good matches in the first two rounds, could have easily beaten Ferrer. Who knows how it would have gone after that. But probably came within a point of beating him.

Q. Coming into Wimbledon a bit under the radar, does that help?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Doesn't matter. You guys can talk about whoever you want to talk about.

Q. The attention will be on the top three or four.
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, those three guys have been the standout obviously since Djokovic, last year, he had a good year on all surfaces. But, you know, obviously after winning his first major in Melbourne, as well. Yeah, there's no doubt those three guys, they deserve to be the three favorites.

Q. You were saying you're not a hundred percent. What percentage are you at?
LLEYTON HEWITT: No idea.

Q. Looking at the top three you mentioned, how much of an effect do you think what happened in Paris yesterday will have on Roger at Wimbledon?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, not sure. He lost the last three years two times in the finals, once in the semis to Rafa at Roland Garros. He's been able to bounce back pretty well on the grass.
Yeah, there's no doubt he'll be disappointed. Rightly so. That's the one tournament missing off his, you know, career list, I guess, especially of big tournaments. I think he's mentally tough enough to know. He still thinks he's the best grass court player out there. Yeah, so he deserves to be the favorite going into Wimbledon.

Q. You've always done pretty well here. How do you enjoy the atmosphere here compared to Wimbledon?
LLEYTON HEWITT: The atmosphere, you know, is pretty similar. It's a good crowd to play in front of. Yeah, even playing an Englishman today, I felt like I had a lot of support out there, which is nice. No, I always feel at home, both here and at Wimbledon. You know, I think the crowds are great, the atmosphere is great. Last year at Wimbledon, played on some of the bigger courts, but played one match, because of rain, on Court 17, out the back. It was a great atmosphere out there, as well.
Yeah, crowds in London are fantastic.

Q. You took on Tony last year. Tony said he wanted to work on your serve, add variety. With injuries this year and last year, how much quality time have you had with him?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, a little bit. We had a good time, a good block before the Australian summer, which was good at the end of last year, through the end of November and December, which was good. Went into the Australian summer, played pretty well there. Ended up losing to Djokovic, which wasn't a bad loss at the time.
Yeah, since then obviously a couple injuries, it's been hard to get on the practice court and really do a lot of work. Especially sort of coming into the French Open, I hardly hit a ball at home before I left for Paris. It's hard to work on any consistency or any kind of routine at all.
Yeah, we're both on the same page, which is good.

Q. If it wasn't Wimbledon now, grass court season, would you be playing?
LLEYTON HEWITT: Probably not, no. I would have liked to have got the injury right a hundred percent before I came back. But, you know, I don't like missing majors. That's why I'm still playing tennis, for the big tournaments. The small tournaments don't mean that much to me. You know, to go out there and play in the French Open, fantastic atmosphere again, that's what I play for.

Q. Do you have a view on the Wimbledon wildcards? Wimbledon are due to announce today wildcards. The LTA has said they don't want wildcards to be given to players ranked below 250 in the world. Your opponent today, for example, wouldn't get one. I wonder if you have a view on that as a policy.
LLEYTON HEWITT: Yeah, I don't know. That's the first I've heard about it. I can't say I've been too worried about who gets one.
Yeah, I think you should still give most of them to your own, though. Yeah, it's an opportunity. They can win one round and it can really kickstart a career. Yeah, a lot you probably have to look at the ages of players, as well, I'd say, maybe how many they've had in the past. But overall, I feel like in Australia we should give most of 'em, if not all of 'em, to Australians. Gives them an opportunity.
I don't know about you guys in juniors, but we've got a couple of guys, one junior, won Grand Slams the last couple years. I think to give them a shot at senior tennis, yeah. Playing on grass, there's not too many guys that enjoy it. A lot of the English younger players, even guys ranked 200 or 300 can cause an upset against guys ranked 100, 110 in the world, so... .

End of FastScripts