Bernard Tomic escapes scare in the first match of the Davis Cup tie – Tennis News
World number 36, Bernard Tomic, was tested to limits before he could register straight sets 7-5, 6-3, 6-3 triumph against the Min-Hyeok Cho of South Korea. It was expected to be an easy win for the Aussie starlet who was leading
his country in the absence of the injury-stricken former world number one, Lleyton Hewitt.
Hewitt had a toe surgery in March and will stay out of action until June. He will be fighting hard to recover before the start of the French Open but it is highly unlikely that he will feature in the only clacy court Grand Slam
of the year.
The Aussie superstar was broken in the first game of the match by an opponent who doesn’t have any official Association of Tennis Professional ranking. He was held to a trail of 1-3 after the South Korean representative saved a
couple of breakpoints in the fourth game.
It looked a bit worse for the teenager who was struggling to make an impact at Patrick Rafter Arena on Friday. However, Tomic stayed focused and pulled of a close victory in the opening set.
The second set was going great for the Aussie teen who broke serve to take a lead of 2-1. However, Cho won a breakthrough in the following game before gifting the following game back to the Aussie that retained his lead.
Australian superstar faced little resistance in the third set that completed the first victory for the favourites. However, the scary start from the South Korean hinted that they are out there to fight and will not lose it the
easy way out.
The problem with the South Korean team was that there Tennis Federation was not able to agree upon the terms with their supreme tennis players so they have to send a weakened team for the tie. The highest ranked player in their
team is ranked 730 in January.
Tomic who helped his country to a straight sets win also received treatment at the sidelines during the match. He struggled with his thigh during the third set of the match and that must have scared the Davis Cup team of Australia.
However, the injury didn’t prove to be a major concern and the 19-year-old team leader came back to finish off the business.
Later on in the day, the 75th ranked Mathew Ebden ousted the 730th ranked, Suk-Young Jeong, to give his country a lead of 2-0 in the tie.
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