Cruz Hewitt bundled out of Australian Open qualifying in front of packed-out crowd

16-year-old suffers 6-1 6-4 defeat to Basilashvili in first-round qualifierSon of Lleyton shows glimpses of potential in AO debut in Melbourne

A near-full court three at Melbourne Park was treated to a glimpse of Australia’s tennis future on Tuesday as Cruz Hewitt pushed former top-20 player Nikoloz Basilashvili in his first formal match at his home grand slam, before the Georgian prevailed 6-1, 6-4 in 73 minutes.

The 16-year-old’s Australian Open debut drew hundreds for the first round of qualifying which would usually be played in front of largely empty stands at Melbourne Park. The curious onlookers were joined by more than a dozen in the Hewitt box including mother Bec and father Lleyton, who sat beside coach Peter Luczak and was briefly accompanied by Australia’s top-ranked player Alex de Minaur.

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