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Hewitt extends annual winning streak in Vegas

Lleyton Hewitt of Australia pumps his fist after making a shot against Jurgen Melzer of Austria during the final of the Tennis Channel Open tournament in Las Vegas on Sunday. Hewitt won 6-4, 7-6 (10). PHOTO: AP

Second-seeded Australian Lleyton Hewitt defeated fourth-seeded Austrian Jurgen Melzer 6-4, 7-6 (12/10) on Sunday to claim the US$416,000 Tennis Channel Open.

Hewitt, the former world No. 1 who is now ranked 20th in the world, captured his 26th career title. He also extended his run of seasons with at least one title to 10 straight, the best such streak among active players.

Hewitt improved on his performance in last year's tournament, when he finished runner-up to James Blake of the US.

"It's always nice to win," he told a news conference. "I've been so used to it in the past, winning tournaments, especially early in the year. In the past, I've been able to win in Adelaide or Sydney or Scottsdale, and it's a good feeling before three majors coming up this year."

"It is a big win," Hewitt said. "After the US Open last year I didn't play until the Australian summer, this year. I had to take the whole indoor season off and that was rough, not only for me and my rhythm for tennis but also mentally and trying to get back," he said.

"My goal coming into this tournament was not to get injured, not to re-injure my hamstring."

Lleyton Hewitt

Hewitt missed eight weeks last year with a knee injury and lost in the third round of the Australian Open in January.

He retired from a match in Marseille early last month with a hamstring injury, which also forced him to withdraw from the tournament in Rotterdam later in the month.

"My goal coming into this tournament was not to get injured, not to re-injure my hamstring," he said. "That wasn't easy in Rotterdam, going there, practicing and then pulling out and watching everyone else play. But that probably made me hungrier this week."

After an exchange of early breaks, Hewitt broke in the ninth game and took the first set in the 10th game when Melzer slammed an overhead into the net.

But Melzer made Hewitt work to close it out in the second. He took a 4-1 lead, but Hewitt battled back, saving a set point at 5-6 en route to forcing the tiebreaker.

He saved three more after falling behind 6-4 in the tiebreaker before finally closing the proceedings on his fourth match point.

"I had enough chances at least to take it to a third set," said Melzer, who was denied a second career crown to go with the title he won in Bucharest last year. "I didn't take them -- some of them maybe a little unlucky, some of them I might have choked."

"But when I wake up tomorrow I'll be happy I had a pretty good tournament here this week," he said.

Hewitt now moves on to back-to-back Masters Series events in California and Florida. Having sustained an injury in Miami last year, he has the opportunity to get back into the top 10 by the French Open.

"I am not putting a date on it," he said. "I'll just see how things pan out. This week's been great and I haven't got too many points to defend between now and the French Open and Queen's, so this is a time when you have to step it up."

"Apart from these next two hardcourt tournaments I am really looking forward to the claycourt tournaments this year," he said.

"I feel like my last few claycourt matches have been good against tough players. At the French Open, if you look at the guys I have lost to, there probably hasn't been one average player," he said.

"They've all been exceptional players so that gives me a lot of confidence in itself and to have wins against people like [Albert] Costa and [David] Nalbandian and [Olivier] Rochus now, gives me a lot more confidence," Hewitt said.
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