Bernard Tomic forced to fight for Australian Open wildcard spot
Former Australia World No. 1 Bernard Tomic will be forced to battle for a wildcard entry during the 2018 Australian Open. Tomic, who plummeted from a career-high World No. 17 to World No. 143 in 2016, has been invited to compete in a 16-man bracket in the wildcard playoff in Melbourne in December.
The 25-year-old Australian has yet to accept the invitation, according to The Herald Sun. Thanasi Kokkinakis, dealing with a few injuries, has been awarded a discretionary wildcard, but Tomic won’t be given a guaranteed start. Lleyton Hewitt, the captain of Australia's Davis Cup team, has revealed that Tomic was unsure of his plans for the summer until a few weeks ago, but has decided to enter qualifying for the Brisbane International and the Australian Open.
“He’s had a tough year and he needs matches and he’s got to put himself out there on the line to have a crack at making the Open. We all know the kind of tennis he can play but he has to get back to that level and he also needs to commit to the sport as well and we won’t be making any more wildcard decisions until we see what happens in the playoffs," said Hewitt, the former two-time Grand Slam champion.
Lleyton Hewitt impressed with Nick Kyrgios
Meanwhile, Nick Kyrgios, ranked No. 20 in the world, wouldn't need to qualify for the first Grand Slam of the year. Hewitt said he has been impressed with Kyrgios' newfound maturity.
“Coming in a lot of the top guys from the previous years are going to be seeded a lot lower because they haven’t played really for the last six months so there’s going to be a question mark on how they come in and how their bodies are holding up. (Roger) Federer is going to go in as favourite at age 36 but there’s going to some opportunities for some young guys to stand up and maybe win a grand slam.”
The 2018 Australian Open will be held at Melbourne Park between Jan. 15-18. It is the 106th edition of the event and the first Grand Slam tournament of the new calendar year.
