Stephen Healy, President of Tennis Australia, announced at a press conference at Melbourne Park on Monday, October 26th that Lleyton Hewitt has been selected as the seventh Davis Cup captain for the Green and Gold.
For many, perhaps most, Rusty was the most obvious and deserving candidate and his appointment was a forgone conclusion. With 58 matches since 1999 he is the most capped Aussie of all time.
The popular former world number 1 has always been on the front foot about his passion for representing his country and taking the helm. He said, “I’ve always made it my main priority to play for Australia… and that’s something I want to take into my captaincy.” “I’m absolutely rapt to be here and to be leading this great nation.”
Hewitt drew broad based support from elder statesmen such as Pat Rafter and young guns like Bernard Tomic and Nick Kyrgios. At the recent U.S Open, Tomic said “He (Hewitt) is a huge legend to me.” Current interim coach Wally Masur said “Lleyton’s got unbelievable experience and energy.”
His first opportunity to lead the troops will come in March when the United States squad travels to Australia. Hewitt will seek to continue the momentum from July, 2015 when the team reached the Davis Cup semifinals in Glasgow. His dream would be to repeat his success of 1999 and 2003 when he helped propel Australia to her last two titles.
