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WIMBLEDONJune 25, 2013Bernard TomicLONDON, ENGLAND B. TOMIC/S. Querrey THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. What happened in the third and fourth sets with your health? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, very disappointing. I felt very bad out there. Lost my energy. And that I think was due to I didn't eat as much in the morning. I think I only had a little bit of breakfast. By the time I know it, I was playing and I didn't really eat before. It was a nightmare out there the third and fourth. I think I lost my energy a lot in the first and second set. It's okay. Lucky. Somehow I won. Nightmare. Q. What was the difference between that fourth and fifth set? Where did the new energy come from? BERNARD TOMIC: Well, I tried to save as much energy as I can when I knew in the third set that I was feeling very bad. He broke me early in the fourth. I felt very bad. So I gave myself, you know, three, four games where I had to, you know, not try as much so I can have the chance of doing as best as I can in the fifth, because I was feeling very bad out there and I wasn't sure what was wrong. Very dizzy. So I gave myself the best chance. Fifth set I think I played very good at the right time. Q. Did you consider stopping? BERNARD TOMIC: Well, I knew the more I played, the harder I played, the worse I was going to feel. So, you know, when I wasn't playing as hard or going for my shots, I felt okay. It's just when I, you know, managed to lose my breath, he was running me around, I felt very bad. So I tried to shorten the points. I probably wasn't going to pull out. I was going to try to hang in there to see how I feel in the fifth set. That's when I, you know, got all my energy together and played all right in the fifth set. Q. What was the diagnosis? There was a lot of people around you. What did they give you? BERNARD TOMIC: Oh, just a tablet to cool me down because I was very dizzy. I don't know what that does. I managed to feel okay about 10, 15 minutes after that, which is about the start of the fifth set. So very happy the way I played in the fifth set. It's not easy to play this guy. He's very difficult. I mean, looking at the stats, he served 36 aces, so difficult. Q. The Aussie fans got into it right at the start of the third set. Did that give you a bit more adrenaline, raise your level? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, it did. I was very happy to see them at my court. It encourages you a lot. It gave me the will to play when I felt bad out on the court. So I was happy that I had a few supporters out there. I managed to turn it around. You know, that's an important thing, to have the crowd on your side. For some certain players, we can play well. I seem to play better when I have good support around me. Q. Did your dad manage to come and watch you play today? BERNARD TOMIC: No, he didn't. It's sad. It's a shame because, you know, to have this huge tournament here and you're competing, all of a sudden not to have someone there who's been there for your whole life is very difficult. It's not a good feeling. You know, it's tough. But, you know, hopefully it will work out. Q. Do you think Wimbledon was a bit harsh to ban him? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I'm not saying it's Wimbledon, they're harsh. I'm saying probably the ATP. It's their decision. From what I know it's very disappointing, and I'm going to keep saying it, it is. From what they investigated about my dad, whoever is on the board, this guy called Gayle, he said clearly he was on the phone with my father and made a decision on behalf of that. You don't do that. If you're the ATP, you come on a flight, you have a meeting with whatever's wrong. At this stage, they didn't. They investigated something on the telephone for 30 seconds and made a decision, which is very bad. You don't do that, I think. Whoever was on the board to make that decision, it was Gayle and a few more people, very disappointing to see that happen like that. That's the only thing that's harsh, I think. Q. Any chance of that changing or is that decision fixed? BERNARD TOMIC: Well, Wimbledon have their decision. They'll stand by the decision. But, like I said, the ATP's my main concern of what they did. It's all right that tournaments, certain tournaments, have decided to ban him. I think my dad was able to come at Queen's, which was all right. But it all came through the ATP. Now, there's a lot of players that are very disappointed with the ATP, that's for sure. I'm not going to lie and come here on a press conference and‑‑ you know, before postmatch we always get ATP people telling us what to say. I'm not going to hide and say that, you know‑‑ I'm not going to say false things. I'm going to say the truth of how I feel. It's disappointing. Q. There's a suggestion your dad might have been getting a ticket up at Southfields. Have you spoken to him? Is there any truth in that? BERNARD TOMIC: That, I don't know. That's really a funny rumor. Q. Can't shed any light? BERNARD TOMIC: No, that I don't know about. But, yeah. Q. Have you spoken to him since? Obviously he must be pleased that you won? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I spoke to him on the phone. Yeah, he's very pleased that I won. Like I said, it's very difficult to play a match, the biggest tournament we have in tennis, not to have your coach there or your father who has been there throughout your whole life, is very difficult. I'm going to stand by my decision, I think the ATP did the wrong thing. Q. He's here? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, he's back at the house here in Wimbledon. Yeah, I still spend time with my dad. It's good. It's very good. Q. What does having your dad courtside add to your game? What do you get from him being there? BERNARD TOMIC: It's a difficult question because, you know, growing up with your father is a good thing for me because this is how I became, you know, good at tennis at a young age. I was there with my dad. We worked hard. We were on the court together. Now all of a sudden there's a change. There's always a change in life, a decision that was made on behalf of what happened. Like I said, I'm going to blame the ATP a lot for this. You know, there's a lot of players out there who do not stand by the ATP's decision. They have a lot of bad decisions, a few good ones, but I'm saying this is a very bad one. Q. Your next opponent is James Blake. Could you give us a little bit of a scouting report of what you expect? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, he played well today from what I see. He is going to be very difficult to play. Doesn't serve as good as Sam. That's important on grass, you know, to return well. It's tough to play a guy that's serving well. So James, you know, is not serving as good as Sam, which it's a bit easier for me. I've got to step up and be aggressive off my game. I'm sure I can win this match, too. Q. After a tough year, a tough couple of months, what does this win today mean for you? BERNARD TOMIC: It's big. I'm very happy I won. Wimbledon is the biggest tournament we have. For me it's my favorite one playing. You know, I enjoy playing a lot in Melbourne, but here is somewhere where I started to always look back, that this is where I did well. So to win here, to beat a big seed like Sam, is a good feeling. You know, now I'm going to relax. Hopefully I can keep winning matches here. Q. With your father, given that other tournaments have overlooked the ban, let him sit courtside, is there any chance you would write to Wimbledon, ask Wimbledon specifically to see if they can relax the ban a little? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, for sure. You know, I'll try have a word with them. I know they're very strict here. We'll see what they say. It would be amazing to have my dad here watching me as a coach and a father, something that I want. But Wimbledon are very strict. So I'll have a word with them. Who knows in the next few rounds. Q. Who is in your corner now that he's not there? Who do you turn to with him absent? BERNARD TOMIC: Well, I have a good team of people. I have my physical trainer who has worked with me the last month. Nice guy. Good time with me the last month. We're working well. Also my good friend from Monaco, enjoys tennis. Good to see someone like that helping me. I got a good hitting partner. We're working well the last three, four weeks together. Results are showing. I'm starting to feel better on the court. Q. With Australia struggling in cricket at the moment, how important is it for you to fly the flag for your country? BERNARD TOMIC: It's very, very important. You know, I'm very happy also Lleyton won. It's good to see. I think we're the only Australians left. He has a good match to win. I also have a good match to win. Things are okay for us. We have to come out into our next matches, try our best. The more rounds we do, the better for us. Q. I spoke to Sam about 10 minutes ago, and he's obviously a little bit unhappy with what happened in the fourth set. He said if you're feeling dizzy you should play through it. You shouldn't be allowed a 10‑minute injury timeout. What do you say in response to that? BERNARD TOMIC: Well, you know, that's Sam's opinion. It's difficult. He has to put himself in my shoes if he was feeling bad. You want to do whatever you can to feel good, give yourself the best chance of winning. At that time I was doing the best thing to make myself feel as good as I can on the court. If Sam says that, then that's his opinion. I know if he was in my position, he would feel the same. Q. The dizziness, will you get that checked out by the doctor? What did the doctor say courtside? BERNARD TOMIC: Well, she said that she doesn't know what it's from. I think personally it's from not eating a lot in the morning. I think I managed to eat just a little bit of breakfast. That wasn't enough to hold me till about 12:30 since I started. Then to play two big sets, lost a lot of energy. So I felt that could have been the cause. But I really, at the end of the day, am not 100% sure. Q. Were you not well this morning? BERNARD TOMIC: It's just one of those days you wake up, you don't feel like eating a lot. I didn't eat what I usually eat. It's a lesson to be learnt. Even though I don't feel like eating, maybe I should just shove it down (laughter). Q. I know you're not blaming Wimbledon, do you think the club have been prejudicial towards your father when nothing has been resolved? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, it's a good question. I think, you know, they obviously are going on the ATP's decision. I know the ATP are talking to Wimbledon. They're basing their decision on not letting him come here 'cause of the ATP. Now, it's all starting from the ATP, so I can't blame Wimbledon. I can have a talk to them and see in the next round or so if they can let my father come in. But it's all the ATP's fault, I think. I'm going to keep blaming them. They know that I'm not on their side. You know, I'm taking my dad's side. But at the end of the day, I really think that you don't come to a decision across the telephone in 30 seconds on something like this. I think you meet with the person. You sit down. You say, This is what the decision is now. If the ATP are going to do that, then that's that. Q. When did that conversation take place? When did you know that? BERNARD TOMIC: Probably about maybe a week or so ago. You know, I think personally you resolve something face‑to‑face. You don't do it with a phone call. My dad said it was 30 seconds. Now, on this guy, whoever his name is, I think it's Gayle, he's from the ATP, for him to make a decision like this across the telephone when he hasn't talked to my dad, he hasn't talked to Thomas, blah, blah, blah. He has to sit down with both people. He has to talk. It's the ATP, they have to protect me. He's my coach. My dad is my coach. He's not somebody that's just like a friend. It's very difficult. Q. Did this happen before Queen's or after Queen's? BERNARD TOMIC: No, it was last week, after Eastbourne when I played. Q. Who are you going to try to talk to? BERNARD TOMIC: I'll try to talk to whoever I can here at Wimbledon. But, you know, like I said, Wimbledon's made their decision on behalf of the ATP. So at the end of the day, it's the ATP I've got to be talking to. They're not really going to do anything. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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