Hewitt leads new breed

Lleyton Hewitt is spearheading a revolution in men's tennis. The 21-year-old world number one was one of six youngsters who beat older opposition to sweep into the second week of the Australian Open. The statistic would probably have been even more impressive if Marat Safin (22) had not defaulted with a wrist injury.

It is almost as though last September's US Open final between Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi is going to prove the fitting climax to their years of domination.

New year, new era. Starting here. Yesterday's third-round victories for Andy Roddick (20), Mikhail Youzhny (20), James Blake (23), David Nalbandian (21) and Roger Federer (21) offered firm evidence that a new generation is taking over.

Hewitt, with his 2001 US Open victory and Wimbledon triumph last year, has been the first of this group to surge to prominence. He swept into the fourth round here by dismissing Radek Stepanek 6-3 6-2 6-0 in one hour and 29 minutes.

The top seed is revelling in performing before his home fans and remains on course to become the first Australian to lift this title since Mark Edmondson in 1976. But even with the third seed, Safin, nursing a torn ligament in his right wrist, danger still lurks for Hewitt and it comes from players of his own age group.

Federer, a potential semi-final opponent, heads the chasing pack. The Swiss is six months Hewitt's junior and their titanic semi-final at the Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai last November has sewn the seeds for an enduring rivalry.

'We have always had good matches and we have totally different styles,' said Federer yesterday. 'Hopefully one day I'll have a rivalry with not only one player but a few players, because at the moment it looks like nobody can separate themselves from the pack. Maybe Lleyton is a step ahead having finished the last two years as number one in the world and he's won a couple of grand slams.'

Seeded six, Federer beat Andreas Vinciguerra 6-3 6-4 6-2 to go through to the fourth round and is gathering a momentum that suggests he is ready to progress further at the Australian Open for the first time. 'When I arrived here I wasn't sure about my physical conditioning and I struggled a little bit in my first round match [against Brazil's Flavio Saretta], which lasted three hours even though it was straight sets.

'But now it's three matches won in straight sets, my leg is not hurting and I can be a lot more positive, my confidence is really up.'

Looking perfectly at home on these fast Rebound Ace hardcourts, Federer's aggressive game appears better equipped in 2003. The acid test will come tomorrow when he faces Nalbandian. The Argentine is quietly making a mockery of those who believed his run to the Wimbledon final was nothing more than a freak.

Safin's departure leaves the tenth seed as the only player in his quarter of the draw with semi-final experience at the highest level. But there is no shortage of youthful talent queuing up to share a taste of the big time. Blake, the photogenic American, is proving to be more than a mere clothes horse for new-look sleeveless tennis shirts by making impressive progress with a 6-3 4-6 6-2 6-2 victory over Alberto Martin.

Hewitt will next face Younes El Aynaoui, at 31 comfortably the oldest player left in the top half of the draw. If he's successful, another of the young guns will be waiting, either Roddick, fresh from a 6-2 6-3 6-2 win over Fernando Vicente or Russia's Davis Cup hero Youzhny in the fourth round.

Six weeks on from his heroics in Paris, where he won the deciding rubber of the final for his country, Youzhny maintained his fine form in beating seventh seed Jiri Novak in four sets.

Novak is two months short of his twenty-eighth birthday and there are plenty from his generation in the Melbourne departure lounge at the moment. At least the Czech made the trip. For injured Britons Tim Henman (28) and Greg Rusedski (29) the first week of the Australian Open has made uncomfortable viewing. In their absence the guard is changing.

· Roger Taylor, Britain's Davis Cup captain, has given up hope of being able to pick Henman for the world group tie against Australia that follows the Open.

It means Britain's likely singles players to take on a Hewitt-led Australia are Arvind Parmar, ranked 161 in the world, and Alex Bogdanovic, ranked 459.