Hewitt shows Rusedski no quarter

Rusedski was left down and out by Hewitt

Lleyton Hewitt (Aus, 3) bt Greg Rusedski (GB, 12) 6-4 6-4

Greg Rusedski's hopes of a Stella Artois Championships semi-final showdown with Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras were blown away in 72 minutes by Lleyton Hewitt.

The young Australian produced a high-quality performance, demonstrating his lightning speed around the Queen's Club court as he beat the British number two in straight sets, 6-4 6-4.

The doctor I saw in Belgium actually told me I'm allergic to grass

  Lleyton Hewitt

Defending champion Hewitt will now face Sampras in a repeat of last year's final, an encounter he won in straight sets.

But the young Australian will have to overcome an allergic reaction to grass.

Hewitt has a history of breathing problems and said: "The doctor that I saw in Belgium actually told me I'm allergic to grass.

"I was going to blame that for losing the first round of Wimbledon," he joked.

Rusedski got off to the worst possible start by losing his serve in the opening game of the match.

Hewitt fired a brilliant forehand return after Rusedski had saved one break point.

Hewitt is on course to defend his title

That was all the number three seed needed to take the opening set as he dictated rallies from the back of the court in the windy conditions.

Rusedski held his first two service games in the second set but paid the price for crucial errors in his third, a double fault and an easy volley hit well wide setting Hewitt up for another trademark winner and 3-2 lead.

Even an ace recorded at 144mph and the saving of one match point in the ninth game failed to inspire Rusedski to any heroics.

Hewitt sealed a well-deserved win as another Rusedski backhand found the net.

As he looks forward to his rematch with seven-time Wimbledon champion Sampras, Hewitt said: "It's the third year I've played him and it's one-all.

"We've had some pretty tight matches and he's playing great from what I've seen so far.

I think I'm going to be one of the dark horses at Wimbledon - the seeds are not going to want to meet me too early

  Greg Rusedski

"He'll be very hard to break, so I'm going to have to play even better than I did today, that's for sure."

Rusedski heads to Nottingham next week to finalise his preparations for Wimbledon looking to get more competitive matches under his belt.

"I was a little bit disappointed because we had the right game plan, the right tactics but the execution was not there," the 27-year-old said.

"It was frustrating because I felt I was playing well enough to win.

"Against players like Hewitt and Sampras you have to take those opportunities. He had two and took them."