Teenage Australian Cruz Hewitt makes major ATP ranking leap after DC Open win

Seventeen-year-old Australian tennis player Cruz Hewitt is rapidly ascending the professional ranks following his impressive debut win at the DC Open. Hewitt, who recently reached the Wimbledon boys final, secured his first ATP Tour main-draw victory by defeating former world number 37 Marcus Giron in straight sets.

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He told me] mainly to enjoy it, because it was my first tour-level match … and to take every point one-by-one, to enjoy the atmosphere and to enjoy the crowd and that is what I did.

The young Australian's performance has seen him surge 255 spots in the ATP live rankings, reaching a new career-high of number 357. Hewitt's victory in Washington D.C. marks him as the fourth male player born in 2008 or later to win a tour-level match and the youngest winner at the Washington event since Kei Nishikori in 2007. He qualified for the tournament after receiving walkovers in earlier rounds.

Hewitt's next challenge in the round of 16 will be against either fellow Australian Alex de Minaur, the defending champion, or former world number three Stefanos Tsitsipas. He acknowledged the pressure of carrying the Hewitt name, which belongs to his father Lleyton, a former world number one and two-time Grand Slam champion. "There is obviously a little bit of pressure, but I try to take the positives out of it as well, and I am happy with how I am dealing with it so far," Hewitt said.

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There is obviously a little bit of pressure, but I try to take the positives out of it as well, and I am happy with how I am dealing with it so far.

He shared that his father advised him to "mainly to enjoy it, because it was my first tour-level match … and to take every point one-by-one, to enjoy the atmosphere and to enjoy the crowd." Hewitt expressed his satisfaction with his performance, stating, "I am really happy with how I competed today. I came out and started pretty well, and I am thrilled to get through to the next round."

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I am really happy with how I competed today. I came out and started pretty well, and I am thrilled to get through to the next round.

Meanwhile, Alex de Minaur is returning to competition after a brief honeymoon following his marriage to fellow professional Katie Boulter in Tuscany. De Minaur, who is defending his title in Washington, described his wedding as "amazing" but is now focused on his tennis career. "Then we're on a flight here to Washington and getting our heads screwed back on and back to being tennis players," he said.

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It was an amazing time, everything we could have ever imagined.