Lleyton Hewitt Expects Novak Djokovic to Repeat in 2012

Written by: Staff on 30th December 2011

Lleyton Hewitt Expects Novak Djokovic to Repeat in 2012

Novak Djokovic of Serbia returns the ball to Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia during their group A match of the ATP World Tour tennis finals in London, Britain, 25 November 2011. EPA/KERIM OKTEN |

Lleyton Hewitt may not have complete title chances at the Australian Open despite his best efforts, but the Aussie veteran is more than comfortable with making his opinions felt when it comes to the top contenders for the first major trophy of 2012.

Hewitt, 30, is tipping No. 1 Novak Djokovic for another standout season, even as the Serb ended 2011 on a low note as he ran out of gas and even then managed just two weeks of holiday down time.

“Djokovic is obviously the form guy,” Hewitt said as he prepared to lead Australia for a seventh time at the Hopman Cup teams event in Perth. “I think he would have had plenty of time to get over his shoulder niggles that he was having at the end of this year.

“He played well here in Perth last year. He’ll be the guy to beat.”

Hewitt could not leave out Roger Federer, the No. 3 who takes a 17-match ATP win streak into 2012. The Swiss won the last three events he played in Basle, Paris and London, dominating the end -of-season run.

The Swiss has not won a Grand Slam since lifting Melbourne in January, 2010 but remains a huge threat in every event. “Roger has obviously stepped up to the mark again. He should have knocked off Novak in the semis of the US Open (he had two match points) and hasn’t lost a match since.

“You can also never count Rafa (Nadal) out, so they’re obviously the main three.”

Topics: Lleyton Hewitt, Novak Djokovic