Shame fakers like Tomic, says medic
BERNARD TOMIC should have been publicly humiliated on court for calling a fake medical time out, according to the ATP’s former medical chief.
Tomic was fined £13,191 after saying he was ‘bored’ and admitting he faked an injury during his straightsets first-round defeat by Mischa Zverev.
Bill Norris, the ATP’s former director of medical services, who spent 35 years patching up Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and the game’s top men’s players, said: ‘If I got called out to court [and realised] some guy just wants to buy time, it is gamesmanship.
‘I would say it out really loud so that the umpire and spectators could hear and say, “You called me out for this? That’s very unfair of you and it’s unfair to your opponent”. I would embarrass the player.’
Tomic’s behaviour drew widespread criticism and was called ‘legal cheating’ by his fellow Australian Pat Cash.
Norris said the rapport he had built up with the players allowed him to read them the riot act if they misbehaved.
‘Over 35 years I had a unique relationship with the players,’ said the 74-year-old. ‘They were all like my children. And when they misbehaved, I would call them on it.
‘Any guy who has faked an injury, after the match he will have to face his peers in the locker room. He will have to face me. And they didn’t like that.
‘Hopefully the fine will set Tomic straight and he will not do that again. It’s a lack of professionalism.’
However, Norris does have some sympathy for the players who retired injured in the first round and picked up £35,000 prize money.
There were seven firstround retirements in the men’s draw, including Martin Klizan and Alexandr Dolgopolov, who from the outset both looked too injured to finish their matches against Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
The retirements on Centre Court angered fans but Norris said players could not be blamed for trying to earn a living when an ‘average career is probably five to six years’.
Norris, who said injuries such as muscle tears have increased as the game has become more physical, added: ‘Money is a motivator, so a lot of players play when they should be recovering. You can’t help that.’