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Bernard Tomic in good form; To face Gasquet in S-Hertogenbosch SF

By Keshav Gopalan

PARIS, FRANCE - MAY 28: Bernard Tomic of Australia plays a forehand during the mens singles firt round match against Marco Trungelliti of Argentina during day two of the 2018 French Open at Roland Garros on May 28, 2018 in Paris, France. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
PARIS, FRANCE - MAY 28: Bernard Tomic of Australia plays a forehand during the mens singles firt round match against Marco Trungelliti of Argentina during day two of the 2018 French Open at Roland Garros on May 28, 2018 in Paris, France. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /
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Bernard Tomic is showing an upswing in form, reaching his first ATP Semifinal since Queens in 2016. The Australian World number 181 had a great end to his clay campaign, reaching the final of a challenger and qualifying for the French Open. While he lost in the 1st round, winning 3 matches in qualifying was a good show of form since clay is his worst surface.

Having had to play qualifiers in S-Hertogenbosch as well, the 25-year-old has scalped Dustin Brown (qualifying), sixth seed Robin Haase and now the fourth seed, Fernando Verdasco, in the quarterfinals. He won in straight sets, posting a 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) scorecard. He came back from a break down in the second set to win in an hour and 14 minutes.

The grass is his best surface, and the results show

Asked about his match, Tomic remarked:

"“Yes, it’s not easy to play Fernando, we’ve played many times before and he’s an unbelievable player with an amazing career, so for me to get on the court today was difficult. I had to start really well and I broke him in the first game, which gave me confidence, so that first break was really important. It was a little bit tricky in the second set, he was leading and I managed to find myself back.”"

Asked about having not won a title on grass, despite it being his favourite surface, Tomic quipped, saying,

"Yes, that’s my goal (to win a tournament on grass). I didn’t play a lot of tennis this year, so for me to play so good this week is really really good for me and I hope I can (chuckle) win here."

Gasquet will be a tough opponent

Tomic’s next opponent, Richard Gasquet, has found his form on the grass this week. He won a tight match against Greek hotshot Stefanos Tstitsipas, who’s been playing well this week too. Like Tomic, Gasquet’s favourite surface is grass as well, and the lawns at the Libema Open seem to suit him well. While many expect a victory from Gasquet, it remains to be seen if the Monte Carlo resident (who’s accent swung from French to Australian in the interview) can pull off another upset. He’s not lost a set so far in the tournament and will be looking to climb up the rankings.

Tomic is currently projected to jump to 145 in the rankings, with a final showing helping him to 120 in the world and a victory takes him close to breaking the top 100.

More to come.

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