25/06/2011 21:50 CEST - INTERVISTE

Bernard Tomic (25-06-2011)

Q. Were you surprised to beat him? Did you expect to beat him? How do you feel about it?
BERNARD TOMIC: I really, uhm, came in today, you know, giving myself a chance. You know, I think I played really relaxed in the first set. You know, I didn't think I could win at the start. But the way I was playing, you know, I was questioning myself. After that first set, it opened up a lot of doors.

Q. In terms of your career, how would you describe your win?
BERNARD TOMIC: Probably most definitely the best achievement that I've done so far. You know, I'll always remember this is the first time I've really done well at a Grand Slam.
I think, you know, the way I've been playing is really good. If I can keep it up like this, who knows.

Q. Can you believe that you're in the second week of Wimbledon?
BERNARD TOMIC: No (laughter). I'd love to believe it, but, you know, it's a new feeling for me. It's the first time I've experienced playing the second week. You know, it's a whole new feeling for me, you know, the last 30 minutes. You know, I'm sure I'll get used to it.

Q. As the win got closer, did it become harder to close it out in your head?
BERNARD TOMIC: It did, yeah. You know, at Love 30, I was questioning myself. That's a time where I said, A free good serve would do me in hand. I'm lucky I served that out wide and got that ace at Love 30, because if I didn't, who knows.

Q. When did you first realize that he wasn't feeling a hundred percent out there?
BERNARD TOMIC: Uhm, well, I mean, I couldn't realize it at the first set. I hit a lot of winners and served a really high percentage. I wasn't doing anything wrong.
It was about the second set where I started to play a little bit more balls, not be as aggressive as much. Then he started missing a few balls that he shouldn't really and started complaining. You know, I didn't know what was wrong with him.
But, look, I think that first set definitely changed his mental attitude, the way he played.

Q. How far can you go?
BERNARD TOMIC: Look, I'm in the fourth round now. I'd love to win another round. It's going to be a next few days where I'm going to have to prepare mentally for it and not just backing off in the fourth round.
I think I can win. I've got to go out there and believe like I did today.

Q. What did your dad say when you came off the court?
BERNARD TOMIC: Apart from the screaming that I couldn't hear anything, he said, you know, Very well done. All the hard work's paid off.
Look, I put it to myself, I really worked hard. Good things happen when you put your mind to it and focus.

Q. Did you speak to Pat?
BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I spoke to him in the gym. He congratulated me. It's good to have someone like that helping out here, especially at a tournament that he's done really well in.

Q. You're the first 18 year old for 21 years to reach the fourth round. What does something like that mean to you?
BERNARD TOMIC: It's big. It's big for me. You know, I didn't know that I was the 18 year old that got there in the fourth round after 21 years. But, look, things happen after and you realize you've done this and achieved this.
You don't really put your mind to it. Don't really want to stop now after you've done it. You really want to keep going. That's what I'm going to do.

Q. Did you have any narrow squeaks in the qualifying event?
BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I did. 4 All, 15 40 in the third, first round, breakpoints.

Q. Really?
BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah. The ball hit the rubber band on my racquet. Sort of bounced. It was a strange shot.
If I look back to coming to the fourth round, that was a point literally where I should have been out of the tournament.

Q. Do you play better the bigger the stage?
BERNARD TOMIC: I like to think so. The better player I play, I seem to fire up and play better tennis. It's always good playing on a court like that. You have so many people watching you. You say to yourself, You have to play well. You have sometimes the crowd on your side, which is always a good thing.

Q. Hard to go from a big court to a smaller court.
BERNARD TOMIC: It can, yeah. That can always pay a bit of a price. The other day I saw Nadal on Court 1, which was a bit strange. Anything can happen at Wimbledon, I guess.

Q. You played Nadal in Melbourne. Did this experience help you today?
BERNARD TOMIC: It did. It put me in a situation where I was in third round then, obviously playing a champion that has won so many Grand Slams.
Today was different. Today I played with a bit of experience of that match that I played against Nadal. I think it really paid out good.

Q. You played Malisse last year in Queen's. What do you recall of that game?
BERNARD TOMIC: Yeah, I played him last year. I think he won in three sets. It was a set all. He called the trainer. We know each other's games. We play a little bit similar on grass, both hit the ball pretty low. He's obviously got good results here, got to the semis years back. He's a dangerous player. He can definitely play good on grass.
I've got to use that fourth round as a gold set and look forward to win.

Q. Was Lleyton able to give you advice for today's match?
BERNARD TOMIC: I didn't get a chance to speak to him. I spoke to Tony about it. He gave me a few tips. Lleyton was busy, I couldn't bump into him. I spoke to a lot of people and they gave me good advice on how to play this guy.

Q. How important is your serve going to be against Malisse?
BERNARD TOMIC: Uhm, important, yeah. He returns really good. He obviously doesn't serve like Robin, but he's much better on the balls where I'm going to give him at low level where he can pick up with his slice. He likes the ball down low.
But, you know, having played him last year, I know his game; he knows mine. We both play a bit similar. I think whoever becomes a little bit more aggressive at times is going to win that match
 

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