Tsonga dances his way round Hewitt to three-set win

TENNIS:LLEYTON HEWITT is a tennis pugilist, evident in the way he walks, talks and competes.

The bigger the challenge the more steely his determination to clamber over anything put in his path. It’s an attitude that has been prevalent throughout his career, but it has been particularly important in recent times as he fights to save a livelihood threatened by a serious foot injury.

Last February, following persistent foot problems dating back a couple of years, he underwent radical surgery that included having a plate implanted in the big toe of his left foot. Mobility is important to any tennis player, but to Hewitt it’s fundamental to his effectiveness on court. He has always relied on his remarkable speed and agility to wear down opponents.

The Australian rarely trampled much grass between the baseline and net. Out for three months, he returned in time for the French Open. He lost in the first round, a fate he also suffered at Queen’s Club. He spent the last two weeks or so practising at the All England Club.

This year’s Wimbledon is the 10th anniversary of his victory in the 2002 final when he beat David Nalbandian, an achievement that placed him alongside Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic as the only previous winners in the main draw. Well it did until yesterday, when he ran into the fifth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga – the Frenchman was in imperious form winning 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.

Hewitt, ranked 202 in the world, relied on a wild card for his place in the tournament, but the Australian doesn’t trade on sentiment. Tsonga had some injury problems of his own, severing a tendon in his little finger in a fall at Queen’s, but apart from a strapping there was no evidence that it hampered his game.

A semi-finalist last year, the Frenchman demonstrated that sort of pedigree throughout the match. His tennis philosophy is to attack everything, a cavalier approach that’s hugely entertaining. Tsonga athletically devours the court in giant strides while retaining wonderful balance to execute his coruscating ground-strokes. The velocity and precision on both serves guarantees cheap points and his willingness to attack the net introduces a variety in approach that can make for an irresistible all-court game.

Hewitt certainly asked some questions, in a characteristically forthright manner, from time to time, but Tsonga always found the required riposte.

The Australian admitted: “I didn’t do a lot wrong really. Yeah, considering where I’ve come from and that’s probably as good as I could have done today really.

“I don’t know how many breakpoints; in the end it would have been close to 10 but I didn’t get too many looks at second serves at all and didn’t get a chance to get into the point at all on any of those.

“It would have been nice to at least build some kind of pressure on his service games, because, otherwise, obviously he goes around and just slaps a couple of balls on your service games. You’re under the pump all of a sudden. I felt the sharpest I’ve felt, but he served too well.”

A consolation of sorts is that Hewitt learned that he had received a wildcard that will allow him compete at Wimbledon in the London Olympics in three weeks time. “At least I get to play here again; it’s a bonus,” he said.

Tsonga was happy with his performance and also that his little finger didn’t interfere with his game.

“I was a bit scared before this match because I didn’t know how my finger would feel during the match. It was okay; it didn’t hurt me too much. I played good tennis. Two weeks ago I played good tennis at the French Open which gave me confidence. My game fits better on grass than on clay.”

However, to become the first Frenchman since Yannick Noah to win a Grand Slam he will have to bridge a gap that in his eyes is still appreciable – to beat Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.

“They improve all the time and because they play against each other so much, they bring each other on and the rest of us find it difficult to catch up,” he said, adding with a smile: “But I try, and I hope at one time they will stop improving and I will continue.”

Hewitt supported Tsonga’s credentials as a potential winner. “Jo has a chance. He can beat Federer; he came back from two sets to love down last year in a big match and beat Roger. (In those circumstances), you’re putting your hand up. He still comes a little bit in and out of matches, mentally. But obviously if he’s serving well then he’s going to be very tough to beat.”

Nadal pushed through a slow start yesterday to defeat Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci, 7-6 (7-0), 6-2, 6-3, while fourth-seeded Andy Murray eased past Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko, 6-1, 6-1, 6-4.