Cruise Hewitt moves closer to the Wimbledon junior final after a near-flawless quarter-final win late on Friday (AEST).
Hewitt completely demolished ninth seed Dimitar Kisimov 6-1, 6-2 in just 53 minutes, dominating the aces (10-1) and winners (22-7).
This is the 17-year-old’s best result at a major and will take him into the semi-finals against Dutch prodigy Thijs Boogaard.
Boogaard, 18, has long been tipped as a future star after claiming his first ATP point at the age of 14, and last month he narrowly lost 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (8-6) to Daniil Medvedev, showing his readiness to move up to a higher level.
But Hewitt will go into the match full of confidence after facing Kisimov a day after demolishing No.2 seed Jamie McKenzie on Wednesday (AEST).
With dad Lleyton and mum Beck watching from the stands, Hewitt won the first five games of the match and never looked back.
Hewitt hasn’t played a junior tournament since last year’s US Open, but looked like a completely different player at this tournament.
He cruised through the opening rounds, beating New Zealand-born German Mackenzie 6-3 6-4 in just under 70 minutes.
Hewitt is the first Australian to reach the last four of the boys’ event since Alex de Minaur ten years ago and he did so without dropping a set.
Then de Minaur reached the final, but lost to Canadian Denis Shapovalov.
It’s a significant improvement for Hewitt, who won his debut match last year before losing in straight sets to 11th-seeded Finn Oskari Paldanius.
His famous father watched from the stands and was the first to come down to congratulate him on his latest triumph.
And now the teenager has his sights set on going all the way at the All England Club.
“Every tournament you go into and hope to win it, but I’m just taking it one match at a time here,” Hewitt said after his win over McKenzie.
“There have been three matches so far and I have enjoyed playing in all of them.
“So next match I’ll try to do the same and then we’ll see how it goes.”
Cruz also said his father’s help in preparation was a huge motivation for him.
“I warm up to him every day, so he helps me a lot. Obviously, him being on the sidelines helped me, just to support me by being there. I’m grateful to have him in my corner,” he said.
Whatever he’s doing is clearly working as Hewitt looks very different in 2026 and his play has caught the attention of the tennis world.
“This is the best I’ve seen Cruz Hewitt play in a long time… he feels more consistent and stable,” Mackenzie Boe wrote on X after Cruz’s Round of 16 win.
“This is the best I’ve seen him play, period. He looks more complete than even earlier this year,” replied another.
Hewitt is also a fan favorite, drawing huge crowds every time he takes the court.
In his final 16th match, Swiss maestro Roger Federer’s twin daughters, Maila and Charlene, were courtside cheering on the Australian.
He also stayed after the match to sign autographs for several minutes after each of his victories, demonstrating his enormous popularity.
Hewitt is currently ranked 606th in the senior ATP rankings and is hoping to win his first junior title later this week.