MELBOURNE - Lleyton Hewitt won an epic battle with Spanish teenager Rafael Nadal yesterday to reach the Australian Open quarter-finals for the first time while the seemingly unstoppable advance of Russia's women came to a shuddering halt.
Hewitt, carrying the expectations of the host nation, had been in deep trouble
when the tricky left-hander strung together nine successive games to set up a two-sets-to-one lead before the Australian clawed his way back to win 7-5, 3-6, 1-6, 7-6, 6-2 in one of his greatest comebacks.
"I was a hurting a little out there, but I told myself just to hang in there," Hewitt said.
The 18-year-old Nadal has been tipped as a future Grand Slam champion after helping Spain win last year's Davis Cup, and Hewitt was not about to disagree.
"This guy's gonna be around for a while," Hewitt said. "He's got a great attitude for tennis. He's hungry and he's good for the game."
The Russians seemed to have the women's tournament at their mercy after seven players marched into the round of 16, but only two survived to the quarter-finals after the shock defeats of Anastasia Myskina and Elena Dementieva.
Myskina, last season's French Open champion and WTA player of the year, fell 4-6, 2-6 to Frenchwoman Nathalie Dechy after Dementieva, a finalist in two of the last three Grand Slams, was upset by Swiss Patty Schnyder 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (7-4), 6-2.
"It was just a bad day today," Myskina said. "It wasn't a Russian day."
The remaining Russians, Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova and US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, meet today for a place in the semifinals.
Russia did at least have something to celebrate yesterday when Nikolay Davydenko beat Argentine Guillermo Canas 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 to join compatriot Marat Safin in the last eight of the men's draw.
Two more Argentines, Guillermo Coria and David Nalbandian, were due to play late last night, with the winner of that encounter to meet Hewitt.
Davydenko, the 26th seed, plays world No 2 Andy Roddick in the quarters after the American blasted Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 7-6 (8-6) 6-1.
The big-hitting Roddick was never in any serious trouble against Kohlschreiber, but said it was his least-convincing performance of the tournament.
"I just felt like I was fighting it a little bit more than I had in the first three rounds," Roddick said. "The good thing is I don't feel like I had my best day and we're sitting here talking about a three-set win."
Another American, Lindsay Davenport, also made it through safely yesterday, thrashing Croatia's Karolina Sprem 6-2, 6-2.
The world No 1 will play either Venus Williams or Alicia Molik in the next round, but unlike Roddick, she was pleased with her progress.
"I'm in the quarter-finals, a great round to be in, and my game's improving. That's a great sign," Davenport said.
Myskina and Dementieva said they only had themselves to blame for their shock losses.
Myskina made 45 unforced errors in her loss to Dechy, only to be outdone by Dementieva who committed 61 unforced errors.
"I can't really say that she won the match, but I can say that I lost it," a dejected Myskina said.
Dechy disagreed with the Russian's verdict.
- REUTERS
MELBOURNE - Lleyton Hewitt won an epic battle with Spanish teenager Rafael Nadal yesterday to reach the Australian Open quarter-finals for the first time while the seemingly unstoppable advance of Russia's women came to a shuddering halt.
Hewitt, carrying the expectations of the host nation, had been in deep trouble
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