No matter what happens in the final, Lleyton Hewitt will know that he has played just about the best tennis of his life. And chances are that even if Marat Safin wins, Hewitt won’t — can’t — lose.He’s a winner for sheer effort alone. It’s taken him 17 and a half hours of match play to get to the final; that includes six matches lasting more than 100 minutes, two lasting more than 200. Clearly a player who relishes the long battle.Indeed, in his on-court mannerisms and his never-say-day attitude, Hewitt resembles Leander Paes. Walking out on court like a footballer with springs on his feet, playing with a heart that threatens to burst through the ribcage, a fist-pumping action a la Brett Lee; Hewitt is aggro personified.His on-court arrogance is also like Paes and his country’s cricket team; a positive arrogance borne out of sheer confidence. Very unlike the Aussie tennis greats of the past: Laver, Hoad, Rosewall, Emerson, Newcombe all dressed in white and behaved accordingly.During his quarterfinal against David Nalbandian, Hewitt insulted the umpires four times, threatened tennis authorities with legal action when they acted against him — and then took on a foreign journo who asked him about the surface. Hewitt’s response to the question: ‘‘If you knew anything about tennis you’d know that.’’His behaviour is aimed as much at motivating himself as distracting his opponent. Playing Argentina’s Juan Ignacio Chela, his repeated shouts of ‘‘come on’’ worked up the crowd and made Chela lose his concentration and control. The fallout was obvious: Chela spat instead of shaking hands.Mindgame, set and match to Hewitt.So what does he do against Marat Safin? His game has no standout feature, save his athleticism and self-belief. Safin, it appears, has everything better than him. The only way to unsettle the Russian giant would be to keep making him play out there. And that’s something Hewitt’s been doing all through the Open.
