CRUZ CONTROL
Lleyton Hewitt’s son Cruz didn’t immediately take an interest in tennis but now he’s showing promise as a junior champion
Contrary to what many might think Cruz Hewitt didn’t grow up with a tennis racquet in his hand, it was actually a soccer ball which held his attention on the beaches of the Bahamas. While his famous tennis legend father continued to travel the world in the later stages of his extraordinary career, Lleyton Hewitt’s son was more interested in channelling Lionel Messi. Every spare moment he’d be outside soaking up the idyllic setting of the family’s impressive Nassau base, kicking the soccer ball or diving into the Atlantic Ocean with his friends.
Back home, Australian sporting fans were already daring to dream about the possibility of another tennis prodigy with the Hewitt name but the sport barely got a look-in around the dinner table.
“He always wanted to play ball sports as a young kid whereas our two daughters weren’t interested in that at all,” Lleyton explains.
“It was exactly the same upbringing for all three of them but Cruz, whether it was a football or any sort of ball in his hand, he always wanted to do something.
“I was still playing on the tour then so there was obviously quite a bit of travel and it was a lot easier for us to travel from the Bahamas to Europe and America than always coming back to Australia.
“It was really that island lifestyle, lots of outdoor activities, boating, swimming at the beach and he loved the water slides and being outdoors.
“The sport he actually played over there growing up was soccer. I would obviously have a kick of Australian rules with him purely because I love AFL so much. But at the time all his friends from his school in the Bahamas played soccer.
“So for the first seven or eight years of his life, he actually didn’t play much tennis at all.”
And the two-time grand slam tournament champion, former world No.1 and Australian Davis Cup hero couldn’t have been happier. He could relate to his son’s stance given, back in Adelaide when he was growing up, all he dreamt about was being the next Darren Jarman for his beloved Adelaide Crows.
“I was into Australian rules football more than tennis growing up,” Lleyton recalls. “It wasn’t until I was around 14 that tennis started to take over purely because of my results. Up until then I came from an AFL background, my dad, my uncle, my grandfather all played professionally so that’s what I dreamt of doing.
“It probably wasn’t until I was 13 or 14 and started going overseas in junior Australian tennis teams and having decent results against the best kids in the world that I started taking it more seriously.
“That was when I really put all my eggs into the tennis basket.”
That egg moment happened for Cruz when the family returned to live in Australia in 2016.
Suddenly he wasn’t kicking around a soccer ball in the backyard or on the beach, it was his dad’s tennis racquets which were getting his attention.
Fast-forward five years and Lleyton Hewitt is sitting next to his wife, former Home And Away soap star fan favourite and pop singer Bec Hewitt (nee Cartwright), at the Australian junior clay court championships in Canberra in April. His presence is causing a buzz but not as much as his 12-year-old son who is steamrolling his way to the national title.
Cruz didn’t drop a set in five matches during the tournament, defeating NSW Elijah Dikkenberg 6-1, 6-2 in the singles final. He also won the doubles title.
A post to his 16,000 Instagram followers was his priority: “proud to take home the title in the Clay Court Nationals. Had a great week in Canberra. #claydog”
The win made headlines around Australia and was a confirmation for Lleyton, 40, of something he’d been sensing for the past couple of years. His kid was the real deal.
“He improved a lot in the last two years,” Lleyton explains. “He did really well to win the clay court nationals, he won singles and doubles and didn’t lose a set in the singles which for him was good.
“Obviously there is a bit of pressure and expectation as well for him going out and playing in an event like that. For him to handle that and get the pace of it was really important.
“In the scheme of things, yes it is nice to win, but it really means very little at the end of the day when you are trying to become a professional … (it’s) one small stepping stone in his career.
“As long as he is getting the enjoyment of going out there and having fun, he likes hitting with other kids and being around that as well, you don’t want to take that away from them.”
The parental pressures put on a child growing
up with dreams of pursuing a professional sport has always been a hot topic. After retirement, Andre Agassi revealed in his tell-all-like-noother memoir he was forced to play a sport he detested by a father who relentlessly, often mercilessly, searched for the American Dream via his youngest child.
At the time of writing, King Richard, an Oscar-tipped biopic centred on the Williams sister’s father, Richard Williams, played by Will Smith, is lobbing a spotlight back on how much the parental/child relationship can influence, or burden, a kid growing up.
Lleyton is at pains to point out that his son was never pushed in that direction but once the decision was made, he wanted to make sure it was done the right way.
And that meant him taking a back seat given that professional tennis dads in this country don’t exactly have the best reputation (think Damir Dokic and John Tomic).
“There are a lot of parents out there who do unbelievable things and dedicate so much of their life to give their kids the best opportunity, as well,” he says. “Those stories aren’t written as much as the headline grabs where people have gone off the rails and stuff. That can happen in any sport, as well, not just tennis.
“But there are so many families I know that give their kids such a great opportunity.
“It works both ways. For me obviously understanding what you’ve got to do to get to the top of the game … Cruz has had his own private coach as well, someone that took me away on junior trips when I was young who I have had a lot of time for.
“It is good for him to have good people around him, for him to listen to other voices – and not just my voice all the time – about tennis.”
Former pro John Mccurdy, who made the fourth round of Wimbledon and coached Mark Philippoussis, has been Cruz’s private coach while he also has his own dedicated fitness coach. And then there are the likes of Aussie tennis legend Tony Roche, Lleyton’s former coach, who regularly helps out while Cruz is also exposed to Australia’s current stars when he attends Davis Cup training sessions with his dad, the team captain.
His favourite player is Alex de Minaur, the 22-year-old who is Australia’s highest ranked player at No.34 in the world, while he has also formed a relationship with 2020 US Open winner Dominic Thiem.
“Alex has spent a lot of time with him on the court and Cruz has seen how he trains. Alex is a great role model for young Australian kids looking up to someone like that,” Lleyton says.
“Dominic Thiem is also one of his favourites. Dominic spends a lot of time talking to Cruz, sending him messages and stuff so he has been fortunate to have some of those connections.”
There are plenty of Lleytonisms which have been passed on, in particular his trademark guts and determination which was the hallmark of his success, earning him 30 career singles titles and $41m in prizemoney. C’mon!
“That is one of the most important things, is to always give 100 per cent no matter the situation you are in, so that’s something I certainly try and instil in him, that’s for sure,” he says. “And a lot of it is about footwork, the small things that are going to make you a better player.
“So many players and even kids can hit balls really but it’s about doing all those small things and discipline that can help you become a better player.
“Just reinforcing that in the young kids as much as possible so that it becomes second nature so they want to go out there and do the skipping, do the footwork drills and stuff like that – realising that’s going to make him a better player, not just always going out and hitting tennis balls.”
So is he an exact replica of his father?
“He is a modern-day player in terms of that he is certainly from the back of the court,” Lleyton says. “He’s got a more extreme forehand grip than I had, more that modern-day forehand with heavy top spin. But his backhand is quite similar to mine, where it is that simple flatter shot from the back of the court. Hopefully he ends up a bit taller than me which will make life easier trying to finish points off a bit quicker than I had to.”
The Hewitt household resembles many others
which have three kids. Think organised chaos. And everyone has their roles with the father and son sticking tight given the two girls, Mia, 16, and Ava, 11, have ended up following their mother’s lead.
“Mia is into fashion, Ava is more the entertainer and more into dancing and stuff,” Lleyton explains. “Bec is more in charge of their schedules and what they’re doing because I can’t help them as much with that.”
Dealing with fame is something Lleyton and Bec, 38, have a lot of experience with given their relationship has played out in the glossy magazines since they became engaged after just six weeks of dating and married a few months later in 2005, while Bec was pregnant with Mia.
Just recently the Hewitts have again been making headlines, with their $16m bluechip trophy Toorak home in Melbourne the most viewed property in Australia on the market. Their every move is documented by paparazzi on the Gold Coast, after splashing out on a $4m-plus beach house in Burleigh Heads.
“For me most of it is just blocking it out really because you can’t do anything about it, most of the stuff is just laughable anyway so it is not worth wasting too much energy on it,” Lleyton says.
A decision for the two males of the family to veer off into acting came about when a passionate pitch from tanning and suncare company Bondi Sands ticked a lot of boxes.
To be fair, acting may be a bit of a stretch. The father and son play each other on court in the sunscreen advertisement to be aired in and around next month’s Australian Open, with Bondi Sands a new official sponsor of the grand slam. It takes a special brand to get Lleyton on board, but the tennis champ said it was a “no-brainer” given Bondi Sands is Australianmade and pushing a good sun-smart message to young people.
“Sunscreen plays a big part in tennis,” Lleyton says, “and with everything going on Covid-wise I think it is even more important to support Australian brands.
“For me, I know how hard it is when you’re playing five-set matches to keep the sunscreen on the whole time.
“I’m always on Cruz about how he has got to put sunscreen on before he goes out to play.
“The Australian Open is such a big part of my life as a tennis player, qualifying and playing 20 Australian Opens in a row, but even afterwards doing commentary for some of the biggest matches.
“So for Bondi Sands to become one of the official sponsors of the Australian Open it really seemed like a no-brainer.
“The first time we spoke they asked if they could get Cruz involved and I think that is a good thing. For this younger generation to know how being sun-smart is so important for that next generation.”
THERE ARE A LOT OF PARENTS OUT THERE WHO DO UNBELIEVABLE THINGS ... TO GIVE THEIR KIDS THE BEST OPPORTUNITY
Given Lleyton won his first tournament at 16
– and beat his idol Andre Agassi in the process – can we expect a similar entrance into the professional ranks from his son?
“Bec and I know the big journey that is in front of him – if he wants to become a professional tennis player, that is up to him, but we are just trying to give him the best opportunity we can,” Lleyton says.