Fitzy loves Lleyton

From AAP

25dec00

ANYONE who did not like Lleyton Hewitt before Australia lost to Spain in the Davis Cup final, should admire him now, new Cup captain John Fitzgerald said. He said Hewitt's fist-pumping, chest-thumping antics must no longer overshadow his finest attribute: courage. Fighting a respiratory disease and hostile Spanish crowd, Hewitt beat Albert Costa in five sets before going down to Juan Carlos Ferrero in two gutsy appearances in Barcelona. Like former American extrovert Jimmy Connors, Hewitt has an army of fans as well as detractors, but Fitzgerald says the 19-year-old deserves a hero's reception this summer. Hewitt will defend his adidas International title in Sydney from January 7 before heading to Melbourne to chase the first major of his career at the Australian Open. "If you're not a fan of Lleyton Hewitt now there's something wrong with you," Fitzgerald said. "What he went through, what he did for his team and country in Barcelona, was . . . you can't say it was unprecedented but it was good as anything I've seen in 20 years of Davis Cup. " Two days before the Cup final, with the respiratory complaint a real concern, Newcombe ordered Hewitt to admit when he started "hurting" against Costa. "About halfway through the third set Lleyton sat down at the change of ends and said `I'm really hurting' in a shaky voice," Newcombe said. "I looked at him and his whole body was quivering and I thought `My God, I'm going to have to give mouth to mouth to the poor guy. ' "He had a nine-count on him at that stage, halfway through the third set, but he got up off the floor and said, `I'm not going down, I am not going down. ' "He fought his guts out. " Newcombe still has no idea how Hewitt served out the match at 5-4 in the fifth when spectators yelled non-stop at full voice before, during and after points. Hewitt was so stunned by the din that he fell behind 0-40 before winning the next six points for an epic victory. Hewitt's excitement at gradually wearing Costa down had Newcombe bracing himself at each change of ends. "When he comes around and I can see that he's excited and he's coming toward me I think `oh no, he wants a high five,'" Newcombe said. "I've had high fives from Pat (Rafter) when he's excited, and Pat's about twice as big as Lleyton, but after a high five from Lleyton you're hand is dead for five minutes. "There is so much energy there. " Australia starts its Cup campaign against Ecuador in Perth in February before likely tough away matches against Brazil and Russia.