Bernard Tomic’s poor form and his falling ranking – Tennis Special
Bernard Tomic is Australia’s highest ranked tennis player at the moment. The teenager has shown with his talent and skills that he is currently the only hope of Australian tennis, which used to be tennis powerhouse at one time.
However, recent slump in Tomic’s form has worried his fans and Australian tennis officials. The Australian number one lost a one-sided match to Serbia’s Novak Djokovic in the second round of the Rogers Cup. This was his eighth
loss in his last nine matches on the ATP World Tour.
After Lleyton Hewitt’s departure from the top ranks, Tomic is considered to be his flag bearer on the map of tennis world. The 6ft 5in tall has a powerful serve and a big forehand for its support. He can easily dismantle his opponents
with the help of his rapid game play.
Tomic became known on the ATP World Tour after his incredible performance at the 2011 Wimbledon Championships. He became a star in his own country, as he stunned a number of top players at the All England Club. The Australian came
through the qualifying rounds and managed to reach the last-eight stage, beating Nikolay Davydenko, Igor Andreev, Robin Soderling and Xavier Malisse in the main draw.
Tomic had started 2011 with a ranking of 208 and ended on the 42nd position. The Australian kept improving and made a strong beginning in 2012, reaching semi-finals at the Brisbane International and round of 16 at the
first Grand Slam of the season, the Australian Open.
The Monte-Carlo, Monaco resident kept a steady pace and attained his career best ranking of 27 in June. It was looking like he will finish the season inside the top 10 ranked players. However, Tomic has badly disappointed his fans
and well wishers since the French Open.
After a decent performance during the pre Roland Garros clay tournaments, Tomic was expected to give a reasonable showing at the clay court Grand Slam. The Australian defeated Andreas Haider-Maurer of Austria in straight sets to
clear the first hurdle. However, he was upset by Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo in the second round. Tomic lost six more matches in a row after that. The point which creates bigger worry is that these defeats came against low ranked players.
The Australian star retired from his first round match against Tommy Haas at the Gerry Weber Open in the following week. He also lost to the then world number 64, Fabio Fognini, in his opening match at the AEGON International.
The biggest disappointment came at the Wimbledon, where he was stunned by Belgium’s David Goffin in the first round. That loss resulted in a drop of 17 places in his ranking.
After going down against Thomaz Bellucci and Benoit Paire in his opening matches at the Mercedes Cup and Credit Agricole Suisse Open Gstaad, Tomic headed to London Olympics with a hope to do well for his country but he was beaten
by Kei Nishikori of Japan in the first round.
If Tomic continues to perform like this, he would not get a seed at the US Open and that would mean that he could face a top 10 player in the first round. The Australian needs to regain his focus and live up to the expectations.
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