The Bad Boy Comes of Age

Young Tomic announced himself as the next big thing in men's tennis in 2011, when he reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, where he succumbed to eventual champion, Novak Djokovic. Since then, he reached the fourth round at last year's Australian Open and looked poised to make the transition from a prodigious junior to a mature pro when he peaked at 27 in the rankings last June. Things took an unexpected turn though in the second half of 2012, when his form decreased considerably, as he struggled to get any wins under his belt. Following a nightmare run of first round exits, Tomic quickly dropped out of the top 50 and ended up being overtaken by compatriot Marinko Matosevic, who became the number one Australian on the tour.

To add to his misfortune, Australia's Davis Cup captain, Pat Rafter, criticised his attitude and his lack of commitment to the game, declaring Bernard is not putting in the effort on court: "He’s not applying himself day-in, day-out. And so it’s up to him. When he wants to put in that hard work he’ll start having very good results. There’s no doubt about it. On court he needs to be a bit more disciplined with his attitude and a bit more hard work. A lot more miles in his legs and be ready to take on matches day-in, day-out over a long period of time.”

Cocky Tomic was also slapped by his national media who constantly reported his unorthodox behaviour. During the past year the young Aussie was at the centre of some controversies over his dangerous driving or his now infamous issues with the police.

Wanting to prove everyone wrong, Bernie underwent a major transformation in the off-season. The first signs of improvement were seen during the team event in Perth, where he won all his singles matches, one of them against world number 1, Novak Djokovic. He continued the winning run in Sydney, where he went all to way to claiming his maiden ATP trophy after defeating South African, Kevin Anderson, in the final. 

It seems all the criticism has actually helped Tomic evolve. Probably he needed that extra boost to get his career back on track. He now looks forward to the Australian Open where he could meet the great Roger Federer in the third round.

Tomic looks to have put a nightmare period behind him, by claiming his maiden trophy in Sydney where he defeated South African Kevin Anderson in the final.

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