MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 11: Bernard Tomic of Australia looks on in his match against Roman Safiullin of Russia during day two of 2022 Australian Open Qualifying at Melbourne Park on January 11, 2022 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)
Bernard Tomic defeated Juan Pablo Ficovich 7-6, 6-1 in the first round of the Monterrey Challenger
Bernard Tomic is back on the ATP tour with a bang after a long period of inactivity. Since 2020, Tomic has played in only selective ATP events and has mostly been a regular in the ITF circuit which has seen him drop to no. 432 in the world rankings. However, the Australian is now back on tour and is currently playing the Monterrey Challenger in Mexico. After overcoming two rounds of qualifying, Tomic defeated Ficovich in the first round of the main draw. He is now scheduled to face No. 2 seed Emilio Gomez in the Round of 16 tomorrow.
Tomic started this year on a decent note in an ITF tournament in Qatar. He reached the finals before eventually losing to Kristjan Tamm. He was also in action in an ITF event in Kuwait but had to pull out midway through the tournament due to an injury. The Monterrey Challenger is his first ATP professional tournament this year and he would look to make a mark in this event.
Let us take a look at some of the reactions from fans on social media.
“The bloke is legitimately smartening up and regaining lost brain cells. His response after being rejected for the Aus Open Wild Card was somewhat of a surprise. Not to mention ignoring the unprovoked Kyrgios digs after the snub. If he believes he can be top 50 again and compete at Wimbledon to win, good luck to him”, wrote a fan.
“Return of the King”, tweeted another fan.
“Look, even in his prime, Tomic had average mobility for the style of tennis he played, which reminds me of Jensen Brooksby. At 30 years old, I don’t think he can get away with that style on the tour now. I watched Sinner swat away Wawrinka’s groundstrokes like they were flies and get him out of position with ease. I can’t imagine Tomic faring any better”, read a tweet.
“He’s a 30 year old who hasn’t played seriously on the tour since 2019, I would be amazed if he cracked the top 50”, commented another fan.
Another fan wrote: “The rising of the lord has begun.”
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