Once a global super-power in the sport, Australia has waited in vain for a new men's talent to take the mantle from an ageing Lleyton Hewitt and 19-year-old Kyrgios's stylish advance to the Wimbledon quarters propelled a tidal wave of accolades from former players, Hollywood celebrities and politicians.
Following Pat Rafter's return to A-Grade tennis, Rediff.com presents the big names in the tennis world who made memorable comebacks.
Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz beat Norway's Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(1), 6-3 in the men's singles final at the US Open on Sunday to win his maiden Grand Slam title and rise to world number one for the first time.
India's top singles player Prajnesh Gunnesaran drew world number 17 Milos Raonic of Canada as his first round opponent at the Wimbledon Championships, starting Monday.
Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga's unexpected partnership in the doubles allowed France to gain an unbeatable 3-0 lead over Australia on Saturday and join Switzerland and Germany in the quarter-finals of the Davis Cup.
Former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt gave Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov a grasscourt masterclass in a second-round victory at the Aegon Championships at Queen's Club on Wednesday.
Photos from the Queen's Club tennis tournament played in London on Monday
Australian veteran Lleyton Hewitt gave a glimpse of his grasscourt arts to beat Juan Martin del Potro in Friday's quarter-finals of the Aegon Championships.
A list of some of the wildest streakers in sports over the years.
Bernard Tomic and Lleyton Hewitt gave local fans some excitement before the Australian Open with victories in warm-up tournaments on Saturday while David Ferrer entered the record books.
Daniil Medvedev has tapped into the energy of the crowd at Melbourne Park by playing both hero and villain.
Former champion Lleyton Hewitt and Belgium's David Goffin, the lucky loser who took a set off Roger Federer at the French Open, have been given wild cards for this year's Wimbledon tennis championships.
Lleyton Hewitt rolled back the years and gave local fans some excitement before the Australian Open next week by demolishing world number seven Juan Martin del Potro 6-1, 6-4 to claim the Kooyong Classic title on Saturday.
Images from Friday's play at the US Open.
Former world number one Lleyton Hewitt of Australia has pulled out of the French Open because of a left ankle injury, organisers said on Sunday.
Novak Djokovic weathered a gallant challenge from a tenacious Lleyton Hewitt to send the last Australian in the draw packing and make the quarter-finals of the Australian Open on Monday.
Former World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt, currently ranked 178th, has been granted a wildcard to enter the French Open main draw along with seven other players, tournament organisers said on Thursday.
Andy Roddick's 11th Australian Open campaign ended in disappointment on Thursday when he was forced to retire against Australian Lleyton Hewitt when trailing two sets to one.
Fernando Verdasco fought off a valiant effort by former world number one Lleyton Hewitt to help Spain get a 2-1 win over hosts Australia in the Hopman Cup on Sunday.
Two-times Grand Slam champion Pat Rafter's return to the big-time after retiring 13 years ago lasted just 73 minutes when he and his former Davis Cup team mate Lleyton Hewitt lost in straight sets in the Australian Open doubles.
Peter Luczak and Anastasia Rodionova will spearhead Australia's challenge at the tennis event of the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in Delhi as Tennis Australia on Wednesday named its squad, sans Lleyton Hewitt and Samatha Stosur.
Stanislas Wawrinka emerged from teammate Roger Federer's shadow to seal Switzerland's return to the Davis Cup World Group after finishing off Australia's Lleyton Hewitt in the deciding singles rubber of their playoff on Monday.
Lleyton Hewitt and Chris Guccione won the doubles rubber to give Australia a 2-1 lead against Roger Federer's Switzerland in the Davis Cup world group playoff tie on Saturday.
Roger Federer toughed out a 5-7, 7-6 (5), 6-2, 6-3 victory over Australia's Lleyton Hewitt to level Switzerland's Davis Cup World playoff tie at 1-1 on Friday.
The star pull-outs from this year's Commonwealth Games continue with French Open finalist Samantha Stosur becoming the latest to decide against competing in the Delhi event to focus on top WTA tournaments. The Australian tennis ace joins the country's top male tennis player Lleyton Hewitt in pulling out of the Games, according to an Australian Associated Press report.
If Grand Slam seedings provide any indication of the health of a country's tennis, the game might appear on life support in Australia with Sam Stosur the locals' sole representative at their home Grand Slam.
Fifth seed Robin Soderling lost 6-1, 6-4, 7-5 to 18-year-old Australian qualifier Bernard Tomic on Saturday in the biggest upset so far in the men's singles at Wimbledon.
Gusty winds and half-empty stands gave no sense of the usual Parisian glamour as last year's French Open runner-up Samantha Stosur began with an easy win on Sunday and Lleyton Hewitt pulled out injured.
The game of tennis has "enough depth" to negate the absence of star players when the sport makes its debut at the Commonwealth Games, feels India's star player Sania Mirza.
Australia has pinned its hopes on ageing warhorse Lleyton Hewitt to steer the country back into the Davis Cup's world group, naming him in both singles and doubles for their playoff against Belgium in Cairns this week.
World number one and top seed Rafa Nadal will launch his U.S. Open campaign against Russia's Teymuraz Gabashvili after the singles draw for the last grand slam of the year was made at Flushing Meadows on Thursday.
Novak Djokovic brilliantly dominated a listless Andy Murray to claim his second Australian Open title on Sunday to confirm the arrival of a genuine third force at the top of men's tennis.
Former world number one Lleyton Hewitt defeated an ailing Gael Monfils 7-5, 6-3 to win the invitational Kooyong Classic in Melbourne on Saturday and take a timely shot of confidence into next week's Australian Open.
Roger Federer said he was not worried by his shock defeat against Lleyton Hewitt on Sunday in Halle even though a disturbing trend is developing for the Swiss.
Novak Djokovic laid down an early marker ahead of the Australian Open with a scintillating performance on Tuesday as Serbia beat Australia to move closer to a place in the final of the Hopman Cup mixed team event. The world number three brushed aside former world number one Lleyton Hewitt 6-2, 6-4 to secure an unbeatable 2-0 lead for the top seeds after Ana Ivanovic eased to a 6-4, 6-0 win over Alicia Molik.
Nick Kyrgios has the weapons to beat Andy Murray in their Wimbledon fourth-round clash on Monday but must play the match on his own terms, according to former champion Lleyton Hewitt.
Hewitt, the 2001 champion, received his wildcard via a reciprocal agreement with Tennis Australia, which will grant an American a wild card into next year's Australian Open, and was among 16 players who received wildcard entries.
Two-time US Open champion Pat Rafter is to present Tennis Australia with plans to stop the national men's game from sliding into oblivion.
Australian Lleyton Hewitt recorded his 100th grasscourt victory on Wednesday but one of the game's most tenacious warriors landed a bloodless win after Kazakhstan's Evgeny Korolev retired with a suspected shoulder injury. The 2002 Wimbledon champion comfortably won the first two sets 6-4, 6-4 and was leading 3-0 in the third when his opponent called it a day.
He has not won any tournament since the Australian Open in January. Last week, he even lost on grass. Will it be a different story at Wimbledon?
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