Cruz Hewitt to play Alex de Minaur in second round

Alex de Minaur has been a mentor and an inspiration to Cruz Hewitt, a sounding board and even a regular at their family Christmas table most summers.

When de Minaur made it to the Wimbledon quarterfinals back in 2024, he spent time at the Aorangi practice courts with the emerging Aussie sensation, who then roared for his mate on Court 1 as he booked a spot in the last eight.

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But when they meet in Washington on Friday, AEST, after de Minaur posted a good win over Stefanos Tsitsipas, they do so as equals on the court, the Australian No.1 versus an exciting newcomer to the tour. And there is much on the line.

Having caught the attention of the tennis world with a run to the Wimbledon boys’ final earlier in July, the 17-year-old Hewitt has furthered the excitement by working through qualifying to debut on the ATP Tour and claim his first match in style.

It has rocketed his ranking in the mid 360s and while there is still a lot of development to come, the past few months and July in particular suggests the son of legend Lleyton Hewitt is firmly tracking in the right direction, as de Minaur noted.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun. I’m really excited for him, for the match up, for everything he’s been doing,” de Minaur said.

“He’s a great kid and he’s been playing amazingly, but he has completely earned his right to be where he is and I’m looking forward to that matchup, for sure.”

If he was to test de Minaur, the world No.5, in their clash for a quarterfinal of the ATP 500 event, it would further his reputation and almost certainly open further doors in terms of wildcards for the Sydneysider to fast track his development.

The Aussie teenager was hitting with his dad, a former world No.1 and dual-grand slam champion, on Wednesday in Washington as he awaited the result from the de Minaur versus Tsitsipas clash but was excited by the potential match-up.

“He’s like my older brother. I’ve known him basically my whole life. He’s stayed with us. We have Christmas together, also. He’s taught me so much, I think that would be a pretty cool memory for us,” Hewitt said earlier this week.

The words are strikingly similar to what de Minaur said about his next rival’s dad, who has been courtside with him for much of his career, back in 2018 after a win at the Australian Open.

“I grew up watching him play (and) something that always stood out was just his competitive spirit, his willingness not to give up, to fight every ball until the last. That’s what I want to apply to my game. That’s what I’m trying to do every day,” he said.

Further emphasising their connection is an image going viral this week, showing De Minaur with the Hewitt family at the 2018 John Newcombe Medal.

Another photo, showing a young Cruz standing alongside a teenage de Minaur at the event, was shared by the Washington Open’s official account with the caption “we’re not crying, you’re crying”.

The ATP Tour also got in on the action, writing “Can you believe these two are going to face off?”

For de Minaur, who was beaten in the Wimbledon boys’ final a decade ago, there must be a satisfaction in knowing a teenager he has helped inspire is showing signs of being capable of mixing it with the men on the main ATP Tour.

But the 27-year-old, who had a 1-12 record against the dual-grand slam finalist Tsitsipas before prevailing 6-4 3-6 6-3 in a rain-postponed encounter, also has business at hand in what is traditionally a successful stanza on the tour for him.

The defending champion in Washington D.C, de Minaur arrived in the American capital fresh from matrimonial duties with his wife Katie and was under pressure early against the Greek, who won a title last week in a return to better form.

But he reeled off four straight games from 2-4 to clinch the set and while Tsitsipas, a former world No.3, surged in the second set, the Aussie finished strongly in a superb start to his title defence and the North American summer.

“Coming in, I really didn’t have too many expectations. It was a quick turnaround,” De Minaur said.

“I’m glad that I was able to find a way in a tricky match. It wasn’t pretty tennis, but I did just enough to get over the line and I’m happy with that.

“Stefanos has been an incredible player for a very long time. He’s able to really hold that inside-out forehand really well and if you’re not able to find his backhand, you’re in a lot of trouble.

“In the past, I didn’t serve the best when I played him. Today I changed it up a little bit and it ended up working out for me.”

The deeds of de Minaur and Hewitt in Washington D.C aside this week, another emerging Aussie named Ed Winter had the best win of his fledgling career at the ATP Tour event in Los Cabos – and he also has a link to the family.

Winter, who defeated exciting French talent Moise Kouame to clinch his first ATP Tour win, hails from a family who run the W Sports and Media agency in Adelaide of which Hewitt has an involvement.

The 21-year-old, a promising junior who has been in the United States on a college scholarship, has improved his ranking into the 300s and faces American Jenson Brooksby in the Mexico tournament later today for a spot in the quarterfinals.