Struggling to find his form and on his worst surface, former No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt is nonetheless making an impact early in the claycourt season, on Friday reaching the semifinals at the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston.
Hewitt defeated Spain's Guillermo "G-Lo" Garcia-Lopez 6-3, 6-4.
Not at his best when he has to generate his own power, Hewitt still mastered the Spaniard to set up a meeting with Russian Evgeny Korolev, who defeated Argentine Guillermo Canas 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.
"From 3-2 in the first set to 5-1 in the second, I played great," said Hewitt, who failed to serve it out when first serving for the match. "He started going for everything because he had nothing to lose. He was swinging from the hips. It made the match hard to close out."
An American remains in the hunt at the U.S. event as unseeded Wayne Odesnik outlasted serving machine John Isner in three sets. Odesnik will face German Bjorn Phau in the semis, after Phau was a shock winner over German compatriot and former No. 2-ranked Tommy Haas in three sets.
