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AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 19, 2016

Bernard Tomic

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

B. TOMIC/D. Istomin

6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. In terms of the match, was the person in the crowd kind of distracting?
BERNARD TOMIC: It was something I've never experienced in a match for me, so it was very unfortunate. It was a very difficult situation to be in, as well. Even the referee I spoke to said it never happened before.

I hope that person, that lady, is okay. I don't know. I actually don't know if she's okay or not. I really hope she is.

Q. Was it hard in the first few minutes afterwards when the match starts up again?
BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, potentially someone's dying and we're not sure what's going on. You know, we had 15 minutes' gap between that service game then only to play one point.

You know, at one stage I was looking directly at the lady. It was not a good moment to be in for me. I felt very, very sad. I really hope she's okay.

Q. She is. She was responsive.
BERNARD TOMIC: Really? I'm very glad for that. At the end of the day, tennis is tennis, sport is sport. But if someone passes out or on dies on a tennis court, it can be very, very bad.

Q. The incident aside, how did you think you played out there today?
BERNARD TOMIC: I played up and down. He was playing very good, playing freely, playing very relaxed. He's beaten very good players in the past. I knew he would come out like that.

I served very well. That was the most important thing. But I went through lapses where I played very well and played very bad. A few things I need to work on tomorrow to try to recover as much as I can.

I wasn't feeling that great the last few days. I was trying to minimize time on court and do the right things. I'm very happy I won. It was a quality match. He was playing very, very well.

Q. You said leading into the match you didn't want to spend too much time on court. What was your thought pattern once you dropped the first set?
BERNARD TOMIC: It was not easy. Obviously I wanted to win comfortably, win straight. Against a player like Denis, he's beaten everyone not in the top five, top six, but top 16, top 12. He's blasted them off the court. I was very focused to try to win this quickly. He was serving so good; it was very tough.

But I feel physically pretty well. I've been preparing for this tournament very good. Physically-wise I'm okay. I'll do the right things tomorrow and hopefully I feel good on Thursday.

Q. Did you make any changes to your game plan at the start of the second set?
BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, absolutely. I knew that he was serving great. He would have those patches where he was going to start missing some first serves.

I had to mix up my stance, where I was standing, for the returns. Started landing on a few of returns, and felt pretty good those first few games in the second set. I think there was three breaks. Felt like I got on top of him there and played a good second set; third set was also very solid; fourth set I played pretty solid as well.

Q. You must be impressed with how many breakpoints you saved. You only lost 1 of 14. Is that something that is a bit of a strength of yours?
BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, absolutely. I focus a lot and I have a good percentage of first serves on breakpoints. I know what my plan is, my game plan is on big points, breakpoints. That's the points you need to win. They're the most important points, when you're focusing on your serve. That's why I've always been good in those situations.

If I can avoid those situations, better for me.

Q. You have quite a nice draw now. You can't face a seed until the fourth round. Confident you can take advantage of that?
BERNARD TOMIC: I saw today, even now in the locker room, the seeds are in trouble. I saw obviously Nadal lost, which was disappointing. But he was playing a quality player. I'm sure Verdasco played very, very well.

I saw Fognini lost against Gilles Muller, who is not the easiest player to play. I think I'm down to a 3-Love record against him. Lost to him last year in Sydney in the quarters.

I think I play Bolelli. He won. Yeah, I've never played him before in my career. I'll try to suss as much as I can against him.

Q. What is your coaching situation at the moment?
BERNARD TOMIC: To be honest, my dad is helping me as much as he can. We're communicating as much as we can, which is a great thing. He's putting the time aside to help my sister, which is good for her.

But honestly, you know, haven't had anyone coach me for the last year. My good friend, James, that lives in Miami helped out. We had such a good relationship last year. I don't believe too much in the coaching point of view. I believe if you want to get there, you get there.

All these players have coaches and stuff, and it's a good thing to have, but I'm different. I prefer to focus on my game, work hard.

You have to put hours on the court if you have a coach or not. If you want it yourself, you'll get it. I think last year's period of having a good year, my best year, I didn't have a coach. I had a friend there and my father was helping me as much as he can. I achieved what I achieved.

Obviously now I have to work hard on my fitness. It's the most important key to my tennis.

Q. You hit two or three of those scoop fade-away droppers. Do you go into a match thinking you're going to hit those or is it right in the moment?
BERNARD TOMIC: Right in the moment, at the right time. I always save it. I hit it very well. It's a very unique dropshot I love. I started it a few years ago. It's sort of a weapon I use. I think I'm very, very high in percentage on that point. I think I win 80%, 90% of the points when I hit that shot. I like it. You don't want to overuse it, so I only play it at the right time.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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