After up and coming local teen, Bernard Tomic, was ousted from the Australian Open by an in-form Roger Federer last night, Australian tennis fans will now put all their Open hopes into one basket: Lleyton Hewitt.
At almost 31, Hewitt is entering middle-age in tennis years, and with a current WTA ranking of #181 his chances of performing were considered slim at best, so to have reached the fourth round is commendable in itself – which is exactly the kind of glass is half full positive angle to describe someone staring down the barrel of likely defeat. Tonight the odds are well and truly against Hewitt because he’s facing off against a younger, fitter dude who also happens to be current world No. 1, Novak Djokovic.
Hewitt’s chances of victory are slim to anorexic… but he has been known to pull a scrappy, desperate rabbit out of the hat before. And that’s why millions of people will tune in tonight to watch the match and barrack, hoping that Hewitt can hang on for one more round and because we shamelessly root for the underdog – who just so happens to be our countryman; but mainly because unless you care about the Woody’s in the ‘Legends Doubles’, he’s Australia’s only hope for success.
Keep an ear out for the following phrases in the pre-game commentary:
– “hopes of a nation”
– “weight of the country”
– metaphoric references to carrying anything heavy
No presh.
The Men’s Singles 4th Round will be telecast tonight from 7:30pm on Channel Seven.
Title Image by Clive Brunskill via Getty
