MELBOURNE, Australia, 23 January 2005 — Tensions boiled over at the Australian Open during Lleyton Hewitt’s 6-2, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 third-round victory yesterday over Juan Ignacio Chela, who appeared to spit at him in anger over the third-seeded player’s shouts and gestures.
It was the second straight match that an opponent had clearly become upset at Hewitt, known for his extreme intensity that some opponents have interpreted as gamesmanship.
Hewitt’s actions, which also got the partisan crowd roaring, clearly upset Chela as he served at 2-2 in the fourth set. After Hewitt set up triple break point, he did one of his trademark bellows of “Come on!” while pointing his fingers at his forehead.
Despite the score, Chela slammed a first serve that nearly hit Hewitt without bouncing. Hewitt finished off the break, then appeared to swear at Chela during the changeover.
Chela then spat, with TV cameras and photographers capturing the incident. Chela later said he didn’t recall trying to hit Hewitt and didn’t hear the Australian curse at him.
An International Tennis Federation spokesman said although no official warning or code violation was given during the match by the chair umpire, tournament referee Peter Bellinger was told about the incident and comments by both players afterward.
He said Bellinger and other tournament officials would likely review videotapes of the incident on Sunday.
Last year here, Fabrice Santoro, seen spitting in the direction of an on-court official during his second-round loss to Mark Philippoussis, was fined US$1,500 for unsportsmanike conduct. The incident occurred after a disputed line call.
American James Blake mocked Hewitt’s forehead-pointing gesture and shout in their second-round match, although both players later downplayed the incident.
Hewitt, the hottest player on the men’s tour after Roger Federer, broke Chela seven times and had 39 winners. He finished off the match with his ninth ace.
But he clearly wasn’t happy with the 37 unforced errors or the loss of the second set. Asked to rate his performance on a scale of one to 10, he said “about a two.”
He next faces Spain’s Rafael Nadal, who had been touted as a rising star before an ankle stress fracture sidelined him for three months last year. He ousted American qualifier Bobby Reynolds, who has practiced with Roddick here, 6-1, 6-1, 6-3.
Earlier, second-ranked Andy Roddick’s aces had the crowd buzzing as he rode his big serve into the fourth round.
Pounding the ball better as the match went on, Roddick dropped only seven points in his last 10 service games and finished with 22 aces to oust Austrian Jurgen Melzer 6-2, 6-2, 7-5. He also had one of the shots of the day _ a between-the-legs winner with his back to the net while chasing down a lob.
After beating three consecutive left-handers, next up for Roddick is 102nd-ranked Philipp Kohlschreiber, a German with a 10-18 career record.
Roddick woke the crowd up quickly, starting his first service game with a pair of aces and soon was cracking serves at up to 225 kph (139 mph). Melzer, seeded 32nd, had three break points in Roddick’s next service game, then never got another chance.
In the third game, Melzer drew him into the net with a drop shot, then sent up a lob that landed just in. Roddick raced back and flicked the ball back between his legs and down the line as Melzer barely moved at the net.
Women’s French Open champion Anastasia Myskina joined Russia’s two other Grand Slam title holders in the fourth round when American Lisa Raymond withdrew with a torn abdominal muscle that forced her to quit her doubles match Friday after one game.
Top-ranked Lindsay Davenport beat 15-year-old Czech qualifier Nicole Vaidisova 6-2, 6-4 to move into a fourth-round match against 13th-seeded Karolina Sprem, who ousted Russia’s Elena Likhovtseva 6-4, 6-3.
Sixth-seeded Elena Dementieva became the seventh Russian woman to advance when she outlasted Daniela Hantuchova, who committed 78 unforced errors and bloodied her knee in a fall in the second set, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4. She next meets No. 12 Patty Schnyder of Switzerland, a 7-6 (4), 6-3 winner over American Amanda Spears.
No. 8 Venus Williams overcame a rash of early errors to win the last nine games in a one-hour, 6-3, 6-0 rout of Anna Smashnova.
Tenth-seeded Alicia Molik closed a 6-3, 6-2 win over Tatiana Panova with an ace, advancing to face Williams.
Seventh-seeded Tim Henman committed 32 unforced errors and five double-faults in falling to 26th-seeded Nicolay Davydenko 6-4, 6-2, 6-2.
Davydenko next faces 12th-seeded Guillermo Canas, a 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 winner over Radek Stepanek.
Guillermo Coria beat former top-ranked Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 6-2, 6-1.
