Former World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt has tipped Roger Federer to defend his Australian Open, despite the comebacks of Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka in Melbourne.
Hewitt, the winner of the 2001 US Open and Wimbledon in 2002, has backed the Swiss maestro Federer to win his 20th Grand Slam title at the Rod Laver Arena in January ahead of his arch rival Rafael Nadal. After spending nearly six months on the sidelines due to a knee injury in 2016, the Basel native made a stunning return by capturing his 18th Major title in Melbourne, beating Nadal in a five-set thriller, overcoming both his poor record and the mental block he had against his great adversary.
After his triumph in Australia, Federer went from strength to strength, steamrolling one opponent after another to claim a record 8th Wimbledon crown. He also won three Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells, Miami and Shanghai before ending the year as World No. 2.
The 36-year-old has in fact defied father time, and is playing perhaps the best tennis of his career. However, his march towards a sixth Aussie Open trophy will face a stiff challenge from the returning trio of Djokovic, Murray and Wawrinka. But, Hewitt believes Roger will still be the overwhelming favorite, especially with questions hanging around the extent of Nadal’s knee injury.
Hewitt said: “Federer has been so dominant, especially in big tournaments. He’s gonna go in — even at the age of 36 — as probably the favorite. Especially the way Nadal obviously had to pull out of London. But there’s going to some opportunities for some young guys to stand up and maybe win a grand slam.”
He added: “Coming in a lot of the top guys from the previous years are gonna be seeded a lot lower. Such as Djokovic, Murray…that kind of guys — just because they haven’t played really for the last six months. So, it’s gonna be a massive question mark on how they come in, how their bodies are holding up. Mentally as well with a couple of them.”
