Roger Federer takes on old rival Lleyton Hewitt on day one of Switzerland's Davis Cup tie with Australia.
Hewitt and Federer have been rivals for the past 12 years since they first faced each other in a small ATP event in Lyon back in 1999. Hewitt triumphed that day but Federer rapidly developed in a serious thorn into the Australian's side and he leads their head-to-head 17-8 having knocked Hewitt out of multiple Grand Slams over the past decade.
These days Hewitt is riddled by injuries and he suffered a couple of early defeats on the hard court circuit this summer and did not even compete at the US Open. However he can draw on his stunning win over Federer in the Davis Cup eight years ago, coming from two sets to love down to dash the Swiss' hopes in five. He also beat Federer on grass in the final of the Halle tournament last year.
Given the relative form of the top players, many Aussies are hoping that the quick surface change from hard courts to grass may give Hewitt a shot but he was quick to downplay this in the pre-tie press conference.
"Roger is a good enough player to adjust quickly," Hewitt said. "He normally makes at least the quarters, semis or finals of the French Open and then has to back up and go straight into Halle (on grass). His record in Halle speaks for itself, so it's not like he struggles in coming off a claycourt and going on to grass."
Prediction: Federer in four.
