Bernard Tomic won his first match in almost two months as he beat British wild card James Ward in straight sets in the opening round of the grass-court event at Eastbourne.
With his father and coach John court-side for the second straight event, Tomic gave his Wimbledon preparation a badly-needed boost with a professional 6-3 6-4 win on Tuesday.
Despite pulling out of the doubles at Queen’s Club last week, Tomic showed no signs of the hamstring injury suffered during a first-round French Open loss last month.
He’ll face either South African fifth seed Kevin Anderson or Frenchman Julien Benneteau in the next round.
It was Tomic’s first win since his father was charged with allegedly assaulting Bernard’s former training partner, Frenchman Thomas Drouet, during the Madrid Masters in May.
John Tomic was present for his son’s first-round singles loss at Queen’s Club last week, despite his ATP coaching credentials remaining suspended, and he was again on site to see his son play in the seaside town on England’s south coast.
His ATP ban does not prevent him from attending tournaments as a paying spectator, and officials at Queen’s and Eastbourne have opted not to prevent him from doing so.
He was barred from attending the French Open last month and will also be refused entry at Wimbledon next week.
John Tomic sat with Bernard’s agent Fraser Wright among spectators and didn’t show too much emotion, though he clapped as his son fought back from 15-40 down to serve out the first set in 28 minutes.
Tomic continued to serve well in the second set and broke his 216th-ranked to go ahead 5-4 and served out the match with minimal fuss.
World No.64 Tomic had not won a match since a first-round win on clay in Barcelona in late April, losing his past four matches.