Bernard Tomic has overcome stifling heat, a pesky opponent and a lacklustre start to book a second-round US Open date with former champion Andy Roddick.
An off-colour Tomic required assistance from ATP trainers to perk him up during a sapping 4-6 7-5 6-3 6-4 victory over claycourt specialist Carlos Berlocq.
The win over the world No.43 set up a first-time meeting with Roddick on Thursday after the American earlier advanced with a 6-3 6-4 6-4 success over young countryman Rhyne Williams.
Contesting his third US Open after winning the junior championship in 2009, Tomic has yet to venture beyond the second round of the men’s event.
“He’s very talented,” said Roddick, the 2003 champion who is possibly playing his home grand slam for the final time.
“He’s played well. I think now he’s dealing with playing well on a consistent basis. I think that’s the next step for him. Hopefully we can delay the process a week.”
Playing consistently was an issue for Tomic on Tuesday alone as he was forced to battle back after a terribly sluggish start.
The teenager dropped his first two service games of the match to quickly fall behind 4-0.
He upped the tempo to get on the board in the fifth game, then broke Berlocq to get into the contest before calling for the trainer while trailing 4-3.
He popped a pill but it didn’t kick in quick enough to help him recover the first set as Berlocq closed it out after 34 minutes with an ace.
At times, Tomic appeared disinterested and, at one point, he stopped mid-court to literally scratch his head in bewilderment as he wondered what on earth he was doing out there.
His class showed, though, as he rifled a forehand winner to break the Argentine in the second game of the second set.
But after jumping out to a 3-0 lead, Tomic handed the break back as his unforced error count continued to mount.
He netted a swag of drop shot attempts, repeatedly sliced long or wide and was too often off target with his deadly forehand.
But he fired up to break Berlocq with a series of forceful groundstrokes in the 11th game and claimed the second set when the South American coughed up his second double-fault.
Re-energised, Tomic fought hard to break Berlocq again in a marathon second game of the third set, the laconic youngster expressing his satisfaction with a big fist pump after wrong-footing his opponent with another booming forehand.
Tomic fended off a break point with a backhand winner to hold for 3-0 and then couldn’t believe his luck when Berlocq swatted a sitter of a volley into the net to gift the Australian a double break.
He took the set after dead on two hours and carried his momentum into the fourth, breaking Berlocq twice more to clinch victory on his second match point and join doubles partner and Davis Cup teammate Matthew Ebden in the second round.
Lleyton Hewitt plays his first-round match on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) against unseeded German Tobias Kamke.
AAP djw
