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APIA INTERNATIONAL SYDNEYJanuary 12, 2013Bernard TomicSYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES B. TOMIC/K. Anderson THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. How exciting is this? First title on home soil. Had time to sink in? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, couldn't ask for anything more. It's an amazing feeling. Now that I know what it feels like to win a tournament, and it's the best feeling in the world. I'm so happy I won. To do it here in Sydney, you know, it's awesome. I can't ask for anything better. I'm so proud of myself. Can't stop here now. Now I've got to look to the next tournament and keep playing the tennis I've been playing. Q. Any congratulator texts on the phone? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, about 35 after in like two minutes. (Smiling.) It's an amazing feeling to do this, and especially here in Australia and knowing now you can and you've done the right things to do it. You know, it's my first title, and I know I'll win a lot more if I keep this attitude up. I'm happy for this year now. I'm so excited. I'm looking forward to Melbourne. Q. I was going to say, you must be excited about going to go to Melbourne anyway, but now after winning eight matches in a row and a title, can your heart pump any faster? BERNARD TOMIC: No. Like I said, it's just a great feeling. You know, I never got this feeling before to win a title. To do it here, you know, I got goosebumps after the match. I'm going to win a lot more of these and I want to win a lot more of these. I want to keep going. I'm not going to stop here. Going to keep pumping myself to get to the top as fast as I can. Q. What do you think is possible down there next week given your confidence? BERNARD TOMIC: Anything, I think. I've got a good opponent in the first round and I'm playing great tennis. You know, who knows from there? I feel unstoppable. I feel like I'm playing great tennis. When you know that no one can beat you, not even the No. 1, you got a good feeling. It's amazing stepping on court. You're so confident. That's going to be taken down to Melbourne and I'm going ti use that for every match I play there. Q. Not many people you'll be facing in Melbourne serve at 216 kilometers an hour. BERNARD TOMIC: I mean, he was serving amazing tonight. I couldn't pick it. There is a reason why he's won a few titles and been consistently in the top 30 and 40 the last few years and he's beaten top 5 players before. He's not easy to play. You know, I was lucky I got that double fault in the third set, because anything could have happened after that. You know, I did play well off the ground. I served pretty good, but he was serving outstanding. So for me to get that break in the third set was huge, and I'm happy I closed it out. Q. Was it huge, too, to get the break right out of the gate? He seemed like he was a little bit nervous and you got that lead right at the start. BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I returned really well in the first game off his serve. After that, you know, with him I knew it was one break a set. As soon as I could break him I would have to focus on my serve and I knew I would have that set. When I first get that first chance and that first break, I felt really relaxed and closed out that set pretty comfortable. But the second set he started serving a lot better, and it's difficult to get that chance to get a break point. He obviously played well in the tiebreak. Third set was epic. I think under pressure I played really good tennis, and I'm happy I won. Can't ask for anything better. It's an amazing feeling, and I'm really happy. Q. 4‑2 in the first set, when someone in the crowd started singing some 50 Cent, I think you joined in. Is that just how relaxed you were out there? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I just felt really, really relaxed. Out there it's always tough. You're tight and you're nervous, so to get anything you can relax yourself, you want to use it. That's how I am. I managed to serve that game out pretty comfortably. So I was happy he sort of bumped in then. It was quite funny actually. Q. You were you surprised how calm you were? First final. That a sign of what you've been through the past few years? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I was nervous, but I knew how to counter my nervous. I stepped up and played aggressive. Kevin was in these situations a few more times than me, so for me to get in this final and to play the way I played in the first set was really confident. Second set full credit to him. He was playing good. The third set I think under pressure I played really well. Q. In Perth you had three wins, traveled all the way over here, and another five wins. Are you fatigued at all? Can you go five‑set matches in Melbourne? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I think I'm feeling fine. I know I'm really fit and that's why I feel fine. If you asked me to get on the court tomorrow I could play best‑of‑five. It's just amazing what I've done the last few months and got my now body to where it is. And my tennis is improving each day. I can feel it. To get all these matches under my belt is big confidence. This is what you need in this sport: confidence. I'm going to approach Melbourne very differently now. Not I'm confident and know I can do well, and I'm going to push as much as I can down there. Q. What have you done physically? Obviously work on the court, but have you done cross‑training? Kayaking? Rowing machine? BERNARD TOMIC: I can't kayak to save my life. (Smiling.) I've done a lot work, and the work I was doing I was focusing. It wasn't so much the work before I was doing, but I wasn't really focusing. This time I focused in everything I did. I focused regardless if it was tennis or gym or what I was doing. I was focusing on everything and giving myself the best chance to improve, and I felt better each day when I was training. When I went to Perth I was feeling confident, and body‑wise I was good. That's why I played really well there, and it moved on to here. I'm still feeling fine. I can't wait for Melbourne to start because I'm feeling good and my tennis is good. I know I can do well if I play well like here. Q. How are you going to celebrate? BERNARD TOMIC: 9:00 a.m. flight. (Laughter.) It's difficult, because got to get to Melbourne as soon as you can. Nothing better ‑‑ I would love to have fun, go to dinner, but I've obviously got the next thing on my mind, which is the Australian Open. I've got to be best prepared for play on Tuesday. It will be interesting to see the first round down there. I play Leonardo Mayer who I've never played before. I'm really confident, so I hope I can win that match. Q. What about the crowd itself? It was a nice electric atmosphere out there. How did that feel? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, it was a very different feeling in a final. I'm happy they were lifting me up and they were on my side. It's amazing playing in a crowd like in this Australia. It's not every day in every tournament you get the chance to have crowd like this supporting you. So I'm using it, and that's one of reasons I'm playing really good. So I have to take all this away from me and compete outside after Melbourne, after the next few months when I leave to go into Europe and the States and do as best I can there. Keep playing the tennis I've been playing and training the way I've been playing, and I'll do good. Q. What did your dad say to you? It's been quite a journey since you were 12, 13. BERNARD TOMIC: No, he said, Congratulations. It was an amazing feeling for my father and I. I've worked so hard, and it's been since I started at age 8 he was there by my side. For me to have this trophy win here is huge for myself and my father who has put in a lot of work with me over the years. He's one of the reasons why I was able to win tonight. I can't stop here. It's a long road, and I want to win a lot more of these tournaments and I'm going to do it. Q. People said John probably wasn't best person to coach you. Clearly he is. BERNARD TOMIC: My father always is the greatest coach for me for. What I've achieved early on in my career, it was amazing, but I think I never reached my full opponent. I never gave the right quality and 100% I should have when I was younger. That sort of I learnt the past year or two. Now I'm learning this the right way. It's a good feeling knowing that you're learning now and you've learnt on what you have to improve and how you can win titles and the belief you have now. Every tennis match now I play, I believe I can win against anybody. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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