Alex de Minaur and Cruz Hewitt have set up a highly anticipated all-Australian battle at the 2026 Mubadala DC Open. De Minaur, who has known the 17-year-old for a decade as the son of tennis great Lleyton Hewitt, shared his thoughts on facing the rising star at the ATP 500 event.
What Alex de Minaur and Cruz Hewitt Said Before Their DC Open Clash
Top seed and defending champion De Minaur faced a daunting test against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the first round of the DC Open. Entering the contest with a 1-12 record against the Greek, De Minaur silenced concerns about his campaign with a hard-fought 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 victory and advanced to the Round of 16.
With his triumph, De Minaur set up a meeting with Hewitt, who defeated Marcos Giron 6-3, 6-4 in his opening match to notch the first ATP Tour win of his career.
Ahead of their showdown, De Minaur acknowledged that it would feel surreal to square off against Hewitt after watching the 17-year-old grow up before his eyes. Despite their close bond and his praise for the teenager, the world No. 6 made it clear that he would show no mercy on the court.
“It’s going to be a weird situation, right? I’ve seen Cruz grow up for the last ten years. I’ve seen him become the man that he is right now. I’ve hit with him countless times. He’s earned his way to where he is right now. He’s been playing some incredible tennis and ‘big boy’ tennis. I’m going to have to be ready and hopefully make his life as difficult as I can make it,” he said in his post-match press conference.
Meanwhile, Hewitt welcomed the opportunity to share the court with De Minaur, whom he described as an older brother, calling the matchup a dream come true.
“Obviously if I play Alex, that would be a dream to share the court with him. I’ve known him. He’s like my older brother. I’ve known him basically nearly my whole life. He’s stayed with us. We have Christmas together, also,” Hewitt said. “To play him, share the court with him, he’s taught me so much, I think that would be a pretty cool memory for us.”
The winner of the match between Alex de Minaur and Cruz Hewitt will face either No. 7 seed Jakub Menšík or Brandon Nakashima in the quarterfinals of the DC Open, with Taylor Fritz or Alex Michelsen looming in the semifinals.
