HEWITT wins Heineken Trophy

Sunday, June 24th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

DEN BOSCH, Netherlands (AP) _ Lleyton Hewitt won his second grass court title in two weeks Sunday with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over unseeded Argentine Guillermo Canas in the ATP Heineken Trophy final, and the result never looked in doubt.

The Australian's ninth career title earned him dlrs 54,000 and completed his preparation for Wimbledon, which began with last week's win at Queen's Club.

``A day off and I'll be right,'' said Hewitt after the match, unconcerned about going into Wimbledon overtired after 10 matches in two weeks. ``I'll be 100 percent when I play on Tuesday.''

The 20-year-old star won the tournament without dropping a set or even being forced into a tiebreaker.

Hewitt, ranked sixth in the world by the ATP, gradually tightened the pressure on his 61st-ranked opponent.

Canas was leading 40-15 in the seventh game but Hewitt grabbed three straight points to create the match's first break point and converted it immediately. In the ninth game Hewitt clinched the set by breaking Canas again.

The players traded breaks in the first two games of the second set but the match settled down and games went with serve until Canas served to stay in the match at 4-5.

Hewitt stepped up his game again at the crucial moment to force a match point. Canas saved it but Hewitt created a second with a backhand pass down the line and in the next rally Canas hit a ball wildly out to surrender.

``He made me play some tough volleys today,'' said Hewitt. ``But I've been volleying well for two weeks so it's not something I need to work on.''

Giving himself ``an outside chance'' of winning Wimbledon, the Australian said he was going into the next two weeks with confidence sky-high, especially on grass.

``I've come to know the grass court surface very well and I'm learning to play better and better on it all the time,'' he said. ``But I believe in myself on any surface against whoever it may be.''

Hewitt's victory was the fourth straight for an Australian in Den Bosch, the previous three having gone to Patrick Rafter.

``Pat's pretty much owned this place for three years and on the way over here we had a joke about me taking the trophy away from him,'' Hewitt said.