Lleyton Hewitt of Australia holds the Brisbane International men's singles trophy after defeating Roger Federer of Switzerland in Brisbane, January 5, 2014. PHOTO: REUTERS
The 17-times grand slam champion, who won the last of his 77 titles last June, was beaten 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 by a typically gutsy Hewitt who ended a more than three-year title drought.
World number six Federer, who had led their rivalry 18-8 before the final, looked to have turned the match his way after recovering from a slow start but Hewitt showed responded to claim the title in a little over two hours.
“To beat possibly the greatest player in the final means a lot,” said Hewitt. “It’s not an easy tournament to win.
“In the first set I was seeing the ball like a football. Didn’t really matter where he served I was on it.”
Federer had seven break points in the third set but failed to convert any of them as Hewitt ended a 15-match losing run against his fellow 32-year-old.
Despite the disappointment Federer remained hopeful for this month’s Australian Open.
“I was able to sort of serve better overall, more consistent this week than I have in a long time – so that’s very good,” he said.
“I definitely needed a little bit more confidence to play well and hopefully win the tournament and so forth. I have a clear idea what I need to work on and I have a clear idea where my mind and body is at.”
The match was Federer’s last competitive outing before the Australian Open begins on January 13, where the Swiss will be seeking to add to his record 17 grand slam titles with a fifth Melbourne crown.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2014.
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