Bernie can bounce back
Masur says Tomic’s troubles can prove a mere ‘blip’
TENNIS Australia is refusing to give up on Bernard Tomic despite the fallen star’s summer prospects looking forlorn.
Tomic’s decision to withdraw from Brisbane International qualifying has all but scuppered the 25-year-old’s chances of landing a wildcard for next month’s Australian Open.
TA’s head of performance, former Davis Cup captain Wally Masur, says the last two discretionary wildcards will be awarded on “form and fitness”, neither of which Tomic has shown, having plummeted to world No. 140 and not been sighted on court for more than a month.
However, Masur believes Tomic’s troubles can prove merely a “blip” after a decade of grind on the gruelling professional tennis circuit.
Masur pointed to the sabbaticals of other former teenage prodigies, including eight-times grand slam champion Andre Agassi and current world No. 17 Ashleigh Barty, as a reason to believe Tomic has time to resurrect his career.
“He wouldn’t be the first player mid-career to have a bit of blip,” Masur said yesterday.
“We’ve also seen Sam Groth and Alex Bolt go and play a bit of footy.
“Grothy came back with a vengeance and Bolt’s doing well. Ash Barty took a bit of a hiatus to play a bit of cricket. Agassi had time away from the game.
“So it’s a bit of a well-worn path — that accelerated development through their teen years, then the idea to take a step back, gain some perspective is not new.”
It remains to be seen if Tomic presses ahead with plans to contest Australian Open qualifying, with Masur revealing a meeting this month with the former Wimbledon quarter-finalist’s father and coach John was more about Tomic’s sister Sara than Bernard.
“My understanding is that Bernie has been training and Bernie and (Australian Davis Cup captain) Lleyton (Hewitt) have shared some texts back and forth over the last quarter,” Masur said.
“We’re just disappointed. We know the player that he can be and I’m sure that once he gets his hours back up on court and gets back to enjoying what he’s doing, he’ll get back there.
“There’s no doubt about it. Hopefully, it’s sooner than later.”
Ultimately, Masur and Hewitt will decide Tomic’s Open fate when they issue TA’s final two wildcards.
The retiring Groth, a Melbourne local and Hewitt’s doubles partner for the first slam of 2018, is a sentimental favourite to receive one.
“Some of those wildcards will be determined by matches won and lost in these coming (lead-up) tournaments,” Masur said.
“We have to see people on court playing tennis, basically. That is the nature of a wildcard. A lot of it’s on form and fitness.”