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#2 Lleyton Hewitt
Even before he turned 20, Australian Lleyton Hewitt had beaten the likes of Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras and Yevgeny Kafelnikov. He, in fact, was the first teenager to qualify for the ATP Masters Series Finals in the Open Era.
Hewitt came into the US Open of 2001 as the 4th seed. He was by then already the #1 ranked player from Australia moving ahead of Pat Rafter on the ATP charts. Hewitt had a difficult path to the final as he had 2 grueling 5-set encounters against Americans James Blake and Andy Roddick in the second round and quarter-finals respectively.
In the final, Hewitt was up against 4-time US Open champion and sentimental favorite Pete Sampras. The match was a one-sided affair much to the contrary of what most people felt. Hewitt won the match in straight sets as he breezed past former World #1 Pete Sampras to win his first Grand Slam title at the age of 20 years, 197 days. Later that year, Hewitt become the youngest ever ATP World Number 1.
