Lleyton Hewitt won a title for the first time since 2010 with an upset 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 win at the Brisbane International over Roger Federer, his oldest rival on the tour.
The 32-year-old former No. 1s have met 27 times dating back to 1999, and after Sunday’s unexpected victory Hewitt has improved his record to nine wins against the 17-time Grand Slam champion.
Top-seeded Federer was broken three times and committed 22 unforced errors in the first set, making some uncharacteristically basic mistakes including an air swing and two shanked forehands. He fought back in the second set and had breakpoint chances in No. 61-ranked Hewitt’s first three service games in the deciding set, but couldn’t get the vital breakthrough.
