Top teen Bernard Tomic goes for the upset against Marin Cilic on day four of the US Open.
Cilic may have groaned when he saw his draw which pitted him against two of the tour’s most promising youngsters in the first couple of rounds. Still only 22 himself, the big Croatian has lost confidence in his game over the past eighteen years but he will have gained a lot of belief through the way he took care of Ryan Harrison on Monday.
Harrison may be the future of American tennis but Cilic dispatched him 6-2, 7-5, 7-6, the best match I’ve seen him play all year.
Tomic could be a little tougher. The 18 year old Aussie has done little in ATP 250 events but when it comes to the slams he’s a different animal. He made the quarters at Wimbledon, the third round in Melbourne and he’s got former champion Pat Rafter out here with him to provide a bit of coaching and advice.
Cilic knows what Tomic’s capable of. They played in the second round of the 2010 Aussie Open when Tomic was just 17 and the kid from the Gold Coast pushed him all the way for five pulsating sets. And Cilic was in the shape of his life back then, he went on to make the semis !
The one thing about Tomic’s game which really needs improving is his movement. He tries to play a little like Andy Murray, varying the pace on his backhand but you need to be rapid to get away with that on this surface. Cilic will probably expose that today but do not be surprised if Tomic pulls something special out of bag.
