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APIA INTERNATIONAL SYDNEYJanuary 11, 2014Bernard TomicSYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES J. DEL POTRO/B. Tomic THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. Could you just tell us a little bit how you felt out there tonight. Were you tired? Feeling good? Basically just what happened? BERNARD TOMIC: I was ready to play. Juan played too good. There was nothing I could do. I knew it was going to be like that where either he plays very good or gives me more chances. Tonight showed why he's that quality of a player. So there was nothing I could have done. I tried to keep up, but he kept playing the way he was playing. I haven't seen a guy play a second set like that. It was too good. Q. Just in regards to the Australian Open buildup, your first round opponent said that you're just such a great player at home. That's where you play your best tennis is in Australia. Do you agree with that assessment? BERNARD TOMIC: Absolutely. I always play good in Australia. I'm very comfortable playing here. You know, I'm obviously heading to Melbourne tomorrow. Going to be an amazing match for me on Tuesday against Rafa. I'm going to prepare as best I can. It's a tough ask. Obviously tonight I wanted to win this championship; couldn't doit. Juan played too good. Now my focus is on playing Rafa. Q. Just in regards to the crowd, it was pretty electric out there for you today. So many people cheering your name and trying to boost you on. Is that in many ways a bit more difficult than some of the away games when the expectation isn't as high on you personally? BERNARD TOMIC: It's a bit of both. Obviously the support was really good. Juan had good support as well. It was good to see crowd like this tonight. That's what tennis needs. It's really fun to play in these conditions with these people, and the atmosphere is amazing. To be on court with that presence is a good feeling. I'm happy the way I competed. Unfortunate I got killed. There was nothing I could do. Q. Personally are you happy in your assessment of where you are at the moment? You've always had lofty expectations. Do you sort of look back and give yourself a pat on the back about what you have achieved, or are you still hungry for more? BERNARD TOMIC: I need to do a lot better. I can do a lot better. That's what I know. I'm going to work for that. The main concern is once I leave here in February, March and take that tennis on the tour. If I play the way I played here there is no stopping me. But I have to do it and not talk about it. Q. Can I ask you your feelings when you did see the draw. A bit of a double‑edged sword. Did you think, Yeah, it's a good opportunity, and then a bummer too playing the No. 1 seed first up? BERNARD TOMIC: It's a good opportunity. I'm playing a legend, probably one of the best players we have around now, Roger and Rafa. He's a champion. Obviously won that many Grand Slams. It's not easy. He's one of the most difficult players to play. Unfortunately I have to play him first round. I'm going to bring it to him. I'm going to prepare as best I can to play him. Obviously I've had that experience playing him before when I was 18 in the third round in 2011. I felt like I had some chances. I have to be ready and prepare for this match if I want to have any chance of winning. Q. You going to play doubles or mixed down there? Thought about it? BERNARD TOMIC: Haven't thought about it yet, no. Haven't thought about it. My main concern now is to prepare as best I can for this match. That's everything I'm thinking about now. Q. You say you have to focus on this match and prepare the best you can. What exactly will you be doing before the match with Rafa? BERNARD TOMIC: You know, I've got to play free and play relaxed and train the next few days and obviously have the right sort of training that's going to fit the right player I have to play against, because he's very, very difficult to play. So I've got a breakdown of what I need to do, and do it in the next couple of days to give myselfany chance I have against Rafa, because it's going to be very difficult. The odds are not in my favor, but I have nothing to lose. This is something that I have on my side. Q. Do you think that you can go in thinking that you have nothing to lose so that you can fire yourself up a little bit more? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, you know, I don't mind playing left handers. His game is very unique and he's the best at what he does. This is why he's No. 1 in the world and a great champion. So I need to play my game and just relax. I played good tennis throughout this week. If I can just take a few of these matches that I played this week and play the way I played, maybe against him I have a chance. Q. You played very well this week. You also played well tonight to hang with Del Potro up to 3‑All. I know you said he had a great match, great second set. Was there something else that happened at 3‑All? What sort of happened there? BERNARD TOMIC: It's not easy playing him. He's such a difficult player. He makes a lot of returns. When he gets the ball back and you're not in position, you get a little bit defensive and the point is pretty much over. He's beaten everybody, and he can beat everyone quite easily when he's playing good. There is no chance. I felt like at the 3‑All game I missed two, three shots I shouldn't have probably missed. From then, he just sort of got momentum and started to relax, and he was starting to play to win rather not to lose. From then it was very difficult for me to turn it around. Very difficult. Q. Ken Rosewall came up and said a couple words to you in the chair. Do you remember what he said to you? BERNARD TOMIC: He said, Very good tournament. Pleased to have you back. I said, Thank you, Mr.Rosewall, hopefully next year I can come back and have another chance of winning. He wished me luck for Tuesday's match against Rafa. Q. I was going to say, I suppose it's 12 months away, but would you like to come back to Sydney for a third time? BERNARD TOMIC: Yes. Who knows. I enjoy this tournament very much, but we'll see. My lineup has been good playing Hopman Cup, winning here. Same as this year: Playing Hopman Cup and unfortunately losing the final tonight. It's a good way to prepare. Q. So your confidence hasn't taken any kind of hit? BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I've taken a lot. The last two, three weeks was very good for me. I was training a lot throughout the Hopman Cup. Got my good timing there and played very good this week in some matches to get to the final. Couldn't be more happy. Unfortunately today, I was playing against a player that once he played on his terms, it was going to be difficult for me. That's what happened. I tried, but he was too good. Q. I just wondered if you had any chance to talk to any other Aussies about their draw. Ash Barty has a pretty tough assessment on her own. BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I've talked to Marinko. He's playing Nishikori. It's not easy for him. He's going to get motivated to play. He obviously hasn't won a match in a Grand Slam, but can do it. He's been fighting fit the last few months. He has a chance. Obviously Barty plays Serena. It's going to be an amazing experience for her. She has to relax and enjoy the moment, and, who knows, just have fun. She's playing one of the best players to play the game, and she needs to learn a lot from that match. I spoke to Lleyton and he's taking on Andrea Seppi, which is very good for him, because he's playing with such confidence and it's a very winnable match for him. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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