Australian tennis and Australian sport in general is buzzing after the run to the Wimbledon quarter-finals by 19-year-old Nick Kyrgios.
This included defeating the World No.1 Rafael Nadal, who was the No.2 seed for the tournament, and defeating Richard Gasquet after coming from two sets down and saving nine match points.
The road to the top can be a long road, and a road that can take you in various different directions. This is even more so the case today due to the level of attainment being at a much greater level than in the past, which is because of the tougher, physical nature that the sport of tennis, especially in the men’s game/
You have a look at Bernard Tomic, and the rollercoaster ride he has been on throughout his still young career, and you can see how tough the road to the top is and can be. At this stage of his career, he is currently in I would like to call the repair shop.
Almost every player that comes onto the tour today will visit the repair shop, often for a reasonable period of time. Many of the younger players that have been on the tour to a larger or lesser extent over recent years have visited this invisible, yet real repair shop to process, fix, refine, and sort out their games.
Tomic is in this process right now, and has probably been in the shop since Wimbledon 2012.
Tomic’s playing style can be for many people a complicated one to understand, but when you watch him, you can see a bag of wonderful skills that are just about world class in every way but don’t gel.
His ranking at the start of Wimbledon 2012 was No.28. Tomic’s highest ranking during his time in the shop was No.39. Once he leaves the repair shop, his level of play, or talent alone would be consistently between a player ranked 14th to 39th in the world, which would mean he would get to a ranking somewhere between 14 and 39 in a reasonably short space of time.
Then, it will be the hard work and dedication that has been criticised by many that will determine how much further he will go.
For Nick Kyrgios, he is currently in a similar position to where Tomic was after Wimbledon in 2011. He will quickly become the hunted, rather than the hunter, so it will be interesting to see over the next 12 months whether he can handle the pressure of defending his points and ranking.
The playing style of Kyrgios is easier to understand for most people. He is an offensive baseliner, with the ability to play an all-court game.
He has big weapons, and an athletic build similar to Gael Monfils, which I think Kyrgios is using in a better way compared to the Monfils. What I would say that is that he wears his emotions on his sleeves, a typical trait of an offensive and aggressive baseliner.
His tendency to get emotional could be a weakness. I think he will probably have to visit the repair shop, but for not as long as Tomic, to correct deficiencies in his game.
The result of this I think will be that by the end of 2018, we will see both Kyrgios and Tomic inside the Top 5/10, and challenging for them.
How many Australians are going to be in the Top 100 by the end of 2018? I predict there will be six Australian men in the Top 100 by the end of 2018.
They are Tomic and Kyrgios, plus James Duckworth (Top 50), Jordan Thompson (Top 60), Matthew Ebden (Top 90), and Luke Saville (Top 100). And with other players challenging from behind, Australia has the opportunity to grow this number and create a great era for men’s tennis in Australia.
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
The perception that Tomic isn't the sharpest of lads comes more from his off-court behaviour as opposed to anything that occurs on the court. The on-court inconsistencies merely reinforce this perception. It is the off-court comparison with Tomic that is a large part of the reason the public are rallying behind Kyrgios as they are.
Ryan Eckford
Roar Guru
Hello Chop, On Thanasi Kokkinakis, I think he may need more time in order to get his body and physical condition in order, and I can tell you that I predict only one player will be in the Top 100 born in his year, which is 1996, and will be the youngest player in that Top 100. On Kyrgios, I think players will work out how to bring him down because he generally directs his bad emotion at himself, and opponents will implement ways to allow this to eat at him, which thus brings his level down. So I think it will become important to work on that. On Tomic, I think the perceived deficiency between the ears is because he is trying to work out the best way to use his tools to produce great results. Watch this video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcvSJ7Nkx7g I find it hard to believe that anyone in any sport/profession can lose their hunger, or desire to reach the top as you are saying or proposing. Rather, it is clouded because he is trying to find the best way to use his talent.
kazblah
Roar Guru
Couldn't agree more, Chop. Tomic's attitude has always been an issue, even before he broke through at the 2011 Wimbledon. He had to be dragged kicking and screaming to play Davis Cup, picked a stupid fight with Lleyton Hewitt, was at loggerheads with the most even tempered of blokes, Pat Rafter, and cracked it when his dad was banned from appearing court side after bashing one of Bernie's practice partners! He clearly doesn't spend enough time in the gym, which is why he's having such a long stint in the repair shop. Kyrgios on the other hand is very gracious, wished Raonic well for the rest of the tournament, says Kokkinakis is more talented than him and just seems altogether more grounded. Yes, time will tell if he can maintain this but already the signs are better than they were for Tomic at a similar stage.
Chop
Roar Guru
I agree Johnno from the little I've seen and the much I've read Thanasi and Nick will be the headline acts of Aussie Mens tennis for next 5 years or so. I disagree massively with your comparision His tendency to get emotional could be a weakness. I think he will probably have to visit the repair shop, but for not as long as Tomic, to correct deficiencies in his game Tomic's only deficiency is between his ears. He's proven there's no weakness is his execution, but his ability to reproduce it consistently, he doesn't have the ability to stay focussed in matches and when things don't go his way he gives up. Nick certainly didn't do that again Nadal or Raonic (sp?) or at the Aus Open. That's the big difference.
Johnno
Guest
Aussies have another player in the ranks Thanasi Kokkinakis, another Greek Australian tennis player. that's 3 top ones now. He is born in 1996 1 year younger than Nick Kyrgios. He broke into the top 300 this year is ranked around 300-305 now. He is a top prospect a good junior he played for the Aussy davis cup side in Febuary vs Poland. He won the wimbeldon junior doubles last year in 2013 with Nick Kygrios, so plenty of talent coming through. Bernard Tomic has a really talented little sister Sara Tomic born 1998 only 16, but she is playing in the junior grand slams has alot of talent.