Australia Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt to appeal two-week suspension for shoving official

Australian Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt faces a two-week suspension and a fine of AUS$30,000 ($19,800) for shoving a doping control official after Australia's Davis Cup semi-final loss to Italy in Spain. The former world number one has vowed to appeal the decision made by an independent tribunal under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme.The incident occurred in November when Hewitt pushed a 60-year-old volunteer anti-doping chaperone. He was charged in January by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), with the case referred to an independent tribunal.Following a hearing in Sydney in July, tribunal chairman Michael Heron upheld the charge of offensive conduct against Hewitt, who had claimed self-defence."I'm just really disappointed about the overall decision but also the whole process to be honest, and the lack of facts that have been put out," Hewitt said at Ken Rosewall Arena."I'll be going to the appeal process with my legal team, so I won't be talking about it any further."
The suspension will begin from September 24, allowing Hewitt to captain Australia in their upcoming Davis Cup qualifier against Belgium in Sydney this weekend.When asked if he considered stepping down this weekend due to the ban, Hewitt responded: "No.""Unlike the ITIA and the ITF (International Tennis Federation), I won't be making it a distraction for the Davis Cup," he added. "This competition means too much."During his suspension, Hewitt will be barred from all tennis-related activities including coaching, mentoring, playing, captaincy and other associated roles.Australia, 28-time Davis Cup champions, will face Belgium without Alexei Popyrin and Matt Ebden, who are sidelined with back and elbow injuries respectively.World number eight Alex de Minaur will lead the Australian team, with Aleksandar Vukic and John Peers returning to the squad. Wimbledon 2025 doubles finalist Rinky Hijikata will make his debut. Belgium's team will be led by world number 46 Zizou Bergs.Australia holds the second-highest number of Davis Cup titles after the United States but hasn't won the trophy since 2003. They finished as runners-up in the previous two editions, losing to Canada and Italy, before their semi-final defeat to Italy last year.