Cruz Hewitt follows father Lleyton and wins on Wimbledon debut

With dad Lleyton watching on from the stands, 16-year-old Cruz Hewitt wasted little time showing he belonged at the All England Club by winning on his first foray into Wimbledon.

Cruz Hewitt, son of 2002 Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt, followed in his father’s footsteps with victory on his debut at the All England Club on Sunday.

With Hewitt Sr watching on from the stands, the 16-year-old rolled over Russia’s Savva Rybkin 6-1 6-2 in the first round of the boys’ competition.

Cruz Hewitt celebrates during his win over Savva Rybkin in the boy's singles first round at Wimbledon. Picture: Getty Images

Cruz, who sported a back-to-front cap that was his father’s trademark style, made the second round of the juniors competition at the Australian Open earlier this year after losing in the first round of qualifying for the men’s event.

He will next face Finnish 11th seed Oskari Paldanius next.

Lleyton, who also won the 2001 US Open during his decorated career, remains the last Australian man to win a Grand Slam singles title.

Cruz Hewitt won his boy's singles first round match on debut at Wimbledon. Picture: Getty Images

Cruz Hewitt was watched on by father Lleyton as he won his boy's singles first round match. Picture: Getty Images

Earlier this year, Cruz Hewitt says he feels no pressure carrying the famous family name declaring his goal is to one day surpass his father’s feats on a tennis court.

The son of former world No.1 and two-time grand slam champion Lleyton Hewitt, Cruz is forging his own path in professional tennis and has set himself the lofty goal of one day surpassing his father.

“There’s definitely pros and cons (to being a Hewitt) but I try to focus on the good things that come with it,” he told Channel 9.

“The pressure doesn’t bother me too much, I feel like it’s kind of a challenge to, you know, be better than him, so that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Cruz Hewitt celebrates his victory against Savva Rybkin. Picture: Getty Images

Cruz Hewitt celebrates his win during the boy's singles first round at Wimbledon. Picture: Getty Images

Cruz got his first taste of top-flight tennis in January when he was handed a qualifying wildcard for the Australian Open.

But the fixturing gods gave the 16-year-old no favours as he was knocked out in the first round of qualifying by former top-20 player Nikoloz Basilashvili in straight sets.

Later, his Junior Australian Open run ended at the hands of junior world No.1 Jan Kumstat, 6-3 7-6.

“It’s good to be here and it was great to get the opportunity to play in the men’s qualifying,” Cruz said.

“I think it was a great step forward and I learned a lot from the experience with the crowd and just playing those men’s players instead of the junior players.

“I feel like playing the men, every point is the same level and there’s no let-up (whereas) in juniors, you get a few cheaper points here and there.”

Originally published as Cruz Hewitt follows father Lleyton and wins on Wimbledon debut