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CNN Live At Daybreak

Lleyton Hewitt Wins Grand Slam Championship

Aired September 10, 2001 - 08:26   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
VINCE CELLINI, CNN ANCHOR: As we reported, it was a grand slam moment for Lleyton Hewitt at the U.S. Open. He rolled over Pete Sampras in straight sets, claiming his first grand slam championship. And the 20-year-old champ is in New York still to talk about his victory with us this morning.

Good morning, Lleyton Hewitt, the U.S. Open champion. How are you?

LLEYTON HEWITT, U.S. OPEN MEN'S CHAMPION: Good, thank you.

CELLINI: Yes, you've got a little hardware there with you, don't you?

HEWITT: Yes, it's a nice, you know, piece of silverware. There's some unbelievable names on it, and you know, you have my name going under these greats, so it's a real honor.

CELLINI: Have you set that thing down since they gave it to you?

HEWITT: Yes. I didn't take it home last night, that's for sure. But, yes, it's a great feeling and, you know, it has been such a special moment. It was like a dream come true yesterday afternoon.

CELLINI: Well, it was amazing. And it wasn't just that you won, but it was how you won it against the four-time champion, Pete Sampras. Before the match, they had the coin toss. You elected to receive serve, and you proceeded to break Pete at that point. And there have been a string of 87 games in which he had held serve, and then you go on to destroy him.

Do you feel like that set the tone for the match?

HEWIT: A little bit. Pete was obviously serving and playing great going in. He beat three former U.S. Open champions along the way to reach the final, and I knew that I was going to have to receive serve extremely well if I had any chance of beating Pete. And I got on it, and I, you know, in the end in the second and third sets, I started seeing the ball like a football out there. And you know, I was just swinging at everything, and everything was going in. And you know, I just felt very relaxed and very calm, considering it was a such a big match.

CELLINI: It was a very impressive performance, and Sampras was impressed as well. Now, I'll read a quote from him after the match. He said -- quote -- of you: "He's got the best return and the best wheels of the game. You're going to see this Lleyton Hewitt guy for the next 10 years."

Do you believe now with this grand slam win, you're really on your way?

HEWITT: Well, I'd like to think so. As I said, you know, to win one grand slam is fantastic. Pete has won 13 grand slams, so that just proves what a champion he has been over the last 10 to 12 years. And you know, hopefully I can go on to win some more grand slams, but if not, you know, I have still been able to hold, you know, at least one grand slam out. So, you know, I'll keep trying for more of them.

CELLINI: You know, as we look at you on the court and here, you're not a huge guy -- 5'11" and 150 is what you're listed at. How do you generate so much power in your game?

HEWITT: It's hard. I am more of a counter puncher out there. You know, I'm not one of the biggest guys...

CELLINI: Right.

HEWITT: ... and I don't have the biggest serves like a Marat Safin or a Sampras or Ivanisevic, and that's what I need. You know, my return of serve and guys like this to sort of counter punch their weapons, and I have (ph) knowing that coming out through the juniors. I was always playing a couple of years out of my age group. And I was playing against the bigger guys, and you know, I had to get these other weapons, because I wasn't going to have the biggest serve in the game. And that's why I've had to work on my return of serve and my movement and, you know, court agility a lot.

CELLINI: Well, we enjoy your look. It's certainly not the white shirt and white shorts. You are out there with the backwards hat and the bright shirt on. And you're distinguishing yourself also as another Australian star, not Pat Rafter, who is your mentor and of course another Aussie star. So this really helps you get your own identity, yes?

HEWITT: Yes, it's good. But, you know, I owe a lot to the guys like Pat Rafter, John Newcome, Tony Roche, who have really guided me and taken me under their wing, because they have been there, you know, in the tough times, you know, at a lot of Davis Cup matches. And they brought me into the Davis Cup when I was just a 15-year-old and sat me down and, you know, really tried to help me out. And they've been there and done it, and they know what it's like to play in the big matches, and you know, they have been a big help for me, you know, to get this trophy.

CELLINI: Well, the latest in a long line of Aussie stars. We thank you for waking up this morning -- if you ever went to sleep -- Lleyton Hewitt. You know, congratulations on the win. Lleyton Hewitt is the king of New York -- all right, Lleyton, we'll see you.

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