Bernard Tomic ousted by Santiago Giraldo in the second round – French Open 2012
Australia’s rising star, Bernard Tomic, crashed out of the tournament earlier than expected, as he was beaten by the unseeded Colombian, Santiago Giraldo, in straight sets 4-6, 1-6, 3-6 in the second round at the French Open in
Paris on Thursday.
Tomic and Giraldo started the match by winning their serve in the opening two games to level the score at 1-1. The Colombian struck in the third and consolidated on it to grab a 3-1 lead. He maintained that advantage till the end
to capture it 6-4.
Giraldo neither hit an ace nor committed any double fault, maintaining a stunning first serve percentage of 94 and bagging 23 of the 31 points on them. He captured 14 of the 35 receiving points and hit eight winners in the opener.
The Colombian broke Tomic on the very first game of the second set and held his following serve to attain a 2-0 advantage. The 24-year-old claimed more breakthroughs in the fifth and seventh, allowing his opponent to clinch only
one game throughout the set and closing it 6-1.
Giraldo, once again, served brilliantly, hitting 76 percent of the first serves and pocketing 13 of the 16 points on them. He did extremely well on the ground strokes, as he fired 15 winners and made just four unforced errors.
Tomic was looking to make a comeback, snatching a break in the third game of the third set to go up 2-1 but the Colombian hit back immediately to even out the score at 2-2. Giraldo raised his level at the end, bagging last three
games to win it 6-3.
Currently ranked 29th in the world, Tomic failed to impress during the clay court season but he was happy that grass court season is ahead.
He said, "I can't wait to get on the grass. It's now time for me to play well. I'm very confident on grass. I've got two tournaments now - Eastbourne and Halle - where I'm not defending anything and I'll be seeded well for Wimbledon,
maybe even higher to not play the top eight in the fourth round if they seed me high in Wimbledon.”
The Australian added, "That's my favourite surface and I believe this has helped me a lot, this clay court run the last six weeks for my body. I'm very, very fit now ... I think when Wimbledon comes I'll be ready."
Giraldo is slated to take on fourth seed, Andy Murray of Great Britain, in the round of 32.
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