Former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt will warm-up for this year's tournament by competing at Eastbourne, the event now entering its second year on the ATP Tour.
Since lifting the US Open title in 2001 and then the Wimbledon trophy back in 2002, Hewitt has failed to truly build on his potential. The Aussie is a bit unlucky perhaps to have been playing during Roger Federer's dominance but Hewitt still takes some beating when playing on grass and the Wimbledon specials will reflect this.
At 30, many will feel the Australian is past his best. Hewitt's body has begun to feel the effects of a career at the top of the sport. Injury and loss of form have seen his ranking drop out of the top-50, down to 66th, but the former world number-one will have a chance to improve that over a busy summer should his body allow it. Anyone looking for Wimbledon tips shouldn't rule him out.
Foot surgery in March has meant Hewitt will go into next week's French Open without so much as a single match under his belt to test his injury. While he won't be expecting much from his appearance in Paris, Wimbledon will be a different matter all together. Hewitt's decision to compete in Eastbourne shows he is determined to put in a good showing at the All England Lawn Tennis Club.
There is already a strong look to the line-up with more names expected to sign up over the next few weeks. French duo Michael Llodra and Jo-Wilfred Tsonga are both ranked above Hewitt and look set to be the Australian's main challengers, as he looks to iron out any problems with his game ahead of Wimbledon.
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