Lleyton Hewitt Will Play Kooyong

Written by: Staff on 17th October 2012

Lleyton Hewitt Will Play Kooyong

epa03397892 Australia's Lleyton Hewitt returns the ball during the match against Germany's Florian Mayer during the Davis Cup match between Germany and Australia at the Rotherbaum tennis stadium in Hamburg, Germany, 14 September 2012. The Davis Cup matches between Germany and Australia take place between 14-16 September 2012. EPA/DANIEL REINHARDT |

The traditional Kooyong exhibition event, played in the build up to the Australian Open, has scored a major coup by securing the services of former world no.1 Lleyton Hewitt who many believe will early next year be making his farewell round of events Down Under.

Hewitt, aged 31, has elected to play the AAMI Classic at Kooyong (former home to the Aussie Open before it moved to Melbourne, or formerly Flinders, Park in 1988) rather than contest Sydney’s Apia International where he has won the title five times.

The former world No.1, who has restored his ranking to 83rd after toe surgery, has already committed to making his debut appearance at the Brisbane International in the opening week of the season and is probably taking the view that playing in Melbourne at Kooyong will guarantee him more match practice/

At Kooyong, Hewitt will join world No.9 and 2009 US Open champion del Potro among the first four of eight signings announced by tournament director Colin Stubs who is clearly hoping that regular Kooyong visitors such as Andy Murray or Roger Federer will take up other places in the field.

“We are delighted with our player commitments thus far and look forward to celebrating our 25th anniversary by staging a sensational event, jam-packed with great tennis, great entertainment and initiatives such as ‘Kids Day’ on the Friday,” said Stubs.

Former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus and Japan’s Kei Nishikori, winner of the Rakuten Open in Tokyo earlier this month, have also committed themselves to playing at Kooyong.

©Daily Tennis News Wire

Topics: AAMI Classic at Kooyong, Andy Murray, Australian Open 2012, Kooyong tennis news, Lleyton Hewitt, Roger Federer, Sports, Tennis News