Tomic praises Hewitt influence
Bernard Tomic credits sessions with Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt for his good form
London, UK, 16 June 2016 | AAP
Bernard Tomic is primed for an assault on Wimbledon thanks to personal sessions with Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt that have him brimming with confidence ahead of a second-round clash at the Queen’s Club.
Tomic, who eased past world No.20 Kevin Anderson on Tuesday, will take on Fernando Verdasco on Thursday with a spot in the quarterfinals on the line.
He has an impressive 3-1 head-to-head record over Verdasco, having won their past three clashes, which Tomic admits is a major boost heading into their clash.
This, despite Verdasco producing a stunning upset of two-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka on Monday.
“I’m happy I’m playing a player I know I’ve beaten many times,” Tomic said.
“Fernando is very, very dangerous, and I have to go out this match and really focus from the start.
“(Verdasco) showed (against Wawrinka) how he can beat the top players in the world.”
Tomic was forced to come back from 1-4 down in the second set to defeat Anderson and praised the work he’s done with Hewitt for the seemingly effortless transition back to his preferred surface of grass.
But he said it hadn’t been as easy as it looked.
“I was working on a few things with Lleyton the last few days,” said Tomic, who reached the quarterfinals of the Ricoh Open in Holland last week.
“I’m playing pretty confidently and this was a very tough match here.
“(When) you come back onto grass … it’s not so easy.
“I had to work on a few little things that’s going to get my feet going and get the right positive energy to being on a grass court because it’s so totally different to being on clay.
“I’m happy I’m off clay, that’s for sure.”