Cruz Hewitt suffers defeat again in Challengers qualifying round

Cruz Hewitt, the son of the former world number one Lleyton Hewitt, has lost in the qualifying round of a Challengers event. The 16-year-old is very sought after, largely because of his father, who is often regarded as one of the greatest Australian players in the history of men’s tennis. He won two major titles in his career — the US Open in 2001, where he got the better of the former world number one Pete Sampras, and Wimbledon in 2002, where he defeated David Nalbandian in the final.

However, Cruz will have to wait to make his Challengers debut. The youngster lost to Matt Hulme in the second round of the qualifying round at the Brisbane Challenger. The contest lasted just two hours. It was the fifth time Cruz had failed to cement his place in the main round of a Challengers event. Before this, he lost in the qualifying round of the Brisbane Challenger event to Jacob Bradshaw in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-3.

Earlier this year, the youngster featured in the first Grand Slam of the year. However, that did not go as planned as in the seniors draw, he lost to Nikoloz Basilashvili in straight sets with a score of 6-1, 6-4 in the first qualifying round.

He then featured in the Juniors event where his journey ended in the second round. He defeated South Korea’s Kim Moobeen in the first round in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-3. In the second round, however, he lost to Czech Republic’s Jan Kumstat in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 7-6.