Tennis star Bernard Tomic needed to win one point to claim victory – but what happened next will go down as one of the most embarrassing on-court moments in his colourful career
Bernard Tomic’s revival over the past couple of years has been impressive – but he will cringe when he looks back at his tussle against Stefan Dostanic.
Tomic, 32, had a match point against the world number 424 – and looked on course to move into the second round of the ATP Challenger event in Chicago.
Inexplicably, Tomic literally tripped over his own feet as he attempted to close out the contest and appeared to injure his back in absurd scenes.
He then retired a few games later when trailing 2-0 in the third set as he felt fatigued.
In what has been a roller-coaster career, the man once ranked 17 in the world has been grinding away at endless ATP Challenger circuit and lower-tier tournaments over the past couple of years.
It has been a hard slog – Tomic, who once boasted about ‘counting his millions’ – only earned a little more than $64,000 in prizemoney last year.
But Tomic’s willingness to retire on his terms has been impressive, especially given his ranking fell outside the top 1200 in 2023.
Blooper aside from Chicago, Tomic is expected to play in qualifying matches for the US Open, with first-round matches starting from August 24.
The revival of Bernard Tomic (pictured, with girlfriend Keely Hannah) has been impressive – but he will cringe when he looks back at his tussle against Stefan Dostanic
Tomic, 32, had a match point against world number 424 Dostanic – and looked on course to move into the second round of the ATP Challenger event in Chicago, only to injure himself in comical scenes
Tomic’s willingness to retire on his terms has been impressive, especially given his ranking fell outside the top 1200 in 2023 – he is now tipped to play qualifiers ahead of the US Open
Given the tournament is offering record prizemoney, the Gold Coast native will more than likely dust himself off and head to the courts at Queens, New York.
Players who earn a main draw spot at Flushing Meadows are guaranteed $170,000, while Tomic would bank at least $41,500 if he enters the qualifiers.
Meanwhile, fellow Aussie Jordan Thompson is in the form of his life.
Thompson, 31, reached the last 16 at Wimbledon before being forced to retire injured against big-serving American Taylor Fritz.
He has since rested and is primed to return ahead of the final Grand Slam of 2025.
Thompson is tipped to feature in the upcoming Cincinnati Open alongside leading compatriots Alex de Minaur and Alexei Popyrin.
Chris O’Connell and Adam Walton will join them in the men’s draw, while Daria Kasatkina, Maya Joint and Ajla Tomljanovic are poised to feature in the women’s.
