It's a good thing for Australia's Lleyton Hewitt that he thrives under pressure.

	Lleyton Hewitt won his second Grand Slam title at Wimbledon last year.

The last Aussie to win the country's Grand Slam tournament was Mark Edmondson in 1976. For tennis-crazed Australia, the 26-year drought has been unbearable.

Enter Hewitt, ranked No. 1 in the world. A year ago, he was also top ranked, but chicken pox ruined his chances. So this is the first time that his compatriots have realistic hopes of him taking the Australian Open, which begins Monday.

The only other Australian hopes are Wayne Arthurs and Mark Philippoussis, but both are among the walking wounded on the men's tour.

But the Aussies are placing their hopes squarely in the hands of Hewitt, who sparked a bit of nervous speculation after he lost his Hopman Cup match against American James Blake last week.

"I think the competitive juices will get flowing as soon as I get out (to Melbourne Park)," Hewitt said afterward. "You get the smell of a Grand Slam."

Blake said that Hewitt was not playing up to his usual level in their match but that there was little to be concerned about.

"He has dealt with some tough situations in Grand Slams before and ended up winning them," Blake said, after defeating Hewitt for the first time. "I think he is probably the favorite."

"The pressures are mounting on Lleyton because he has done so much that he is expected to never lose," British commentator John Barret told Sydney's The Daily Telegraph.

Never lose? That's a tall order.

Hewitt certainly doesn't know the meaning of the words "give up." Even though he had clinched the No. 1 ranking before the season-ending Masters Cup final in November, Hewitt didn't allow a let down. He was down 1-3 to Juan Carlos Ferrero in the fifth set before he came back to take the trophy.

Sitting at the top of the world is a precarious position. Right behind Hewitt is Andre Agassi, who won his last Grand Slam title at Melbourne. At the end of last season, Agassi nearly forced Hewitt out of his year-end No. 1 spot. Agassi did oust the Wimbledon champion in the U.S. Open semifinals, winning 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (1), 6-2.

Then there's the volatile Marat Safin, who was last year's Australian Open runner-up. Although he didn't win a title until the Tennis Masters Series in Paris, he still had a good enough year to finish as the No. 3 player in the world. Then he helped lead Russia to win the Davis Cup.

Next is fourth-ranked Ferrero, who has to feel that he can be competitive against Hewitt after their Masters Cup final. Fellow Spaniard Carlos Moya, who although he was upset in Sydney by young American Mardy Fish, has a big advantage. He's beaten Hewitt their past four meetings.

Young American Andy Roddick is listed in the odds by Australian bookmakers right behind Moya. Roddick was bounced early out of the tournament in Sydney, and he's He's 0-3 against Hewitt. Roddick finshed in the top 10 last year, but he still hasn't broken through at a Grand Slam tournament and often can't beat the players ranked above him.

Two of last year's Grand Slam champions will be missing in Melbourne. Defending champion Thomas Johansson pulled out with a knee injury. U.S. Open champion Pete Sampras will be at home with wife Bridgette Wilson and new baby Christian. Sampras says he'll return to play in time for the French Open.

One of the hottest players on the tour right now is No. 11 seed Paradorn Srichaphan from Thailand. He slashed his year-end position more than 100 places to finish last year at No. 18. He is the first Thai player -- the first Asian since Vijay Amritraj in 1980 -- to finish in the top 20.

His 40 hard-court victories in 2002 were more than any other player. And he started this season taking another title at Chennai, where he didn't drop a set. Among the top 10 players he has beaten are Lleyton Hewitt and Andre Agassi.

"I have more confidence this year," Srichaphan said. "I'm not scared to play the higher-ranked players. I look forward to it because I have nothing to lose."

After winning Wimbledon, Hewitt said it had always been his dream to win that title. But the final day of play in Melbourne falls on Australia Day, the country's biggest holiday. It's a perfect day for an Aussie to bring home the trophy.

Cynthia Faulkner is the tennis editor at ESPN.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report.