Watching Lleyton Hewitt at the US Open this year has been a fascinating exercise. Australia’s Davis Cup captain has been courtside for as many of his players’ matches as has been physically possible, always positive, always supportive. Once a volatile character on the court, especially as a youngster, Hewitt has been a vision of calm, his presence enough, seemingly, to inspire the best out of the next generation of Australian players.
And they really have been inspired. Led by Alex de Minaur, a man cut from the same cloth as Hewitt in terms of game-style, Australia’s men have enjoyed a brilliant US Open. Of the 12 men in the draw, four made it to the third round for the first time since 1997 and three – De Minaur, Jordan Thompson and Alexei Popyin – reached round four, the best effort since 1988. Popyrin’s win over Novak Djokovic in the third round signalled a major personal breakthrough, Thanasi Kokkinakis showed what he can do when he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the first round and De Minaur has now made the quarters in each of the past three.
