Australia's young tennis star Bernard Tomic has set up a round-four Australian Open date with world number three Roger Federer after beating Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov in a tense five-set encounter.
Tomic showed once more he has the appetite for physically demanding exchanges in his 4-6, 7-6 (7-0), 7-6 (8-6), 2-6, 6-3 win, as well as the mental wherewithal to outlast an opponent who looked to be in superior form on the night.
Tomic credited the backing he received from the partisan Rod Laver Arena crowd, saying it helped him see out a tense match.
"I think the crowd made me win," he said after the five-setter.
"[Dolgopolov is] one of the most unusual guys to play. For me to play him in this round and win is fantastic for me."
Tomic says he is a better player than when he took a set off Federer in a match last year.
"I think I have improved a lot and I keep improving, and we'll see how I go on Sunday," he said.
Tomic and Lleyton Hewitt, who plays his third round clash on Saturday against Canada's rising star Milos Raonic, are the only Australians left in the singles tournaments.
Dolgopolov looked to have the edge over the younger Tomic in the early exchanges, breaking Tomic twice to claim the first set.
But Tomic clawed his way back into the match to force the tie-break in the second set, cantering to a 7-0 lead which belied the close nature of the contest.
Tomic required another tie-break to claim the third in a match where the Ukrainian 13th-seed still looked to have the edge, but the local favourite produced some clutch shots to clinch the set 7-6 (8-6).
Dolgopolov made light work of the fourth set as Tomic wavered, but the boot was on the other foot in the deciding set as the Ukrainian lost his cool after a questionable umpiring decision.
Tomic appealed a shot mid-rally but returned to keep the exchange of shots going, only for Dolgopolov to hit the following shot long.
The Ukrainian was furious, arguing the appeal should have been reviewed on hawk-eye.
The decision to award the point to Tomic stood, and the boy from the Gold Coast powered on to emphatically serve out the final set 6-3.
Tags: australian-open, tennis, sport, melbourne-3000, vic, australia First posted January 20, 2012 23:00:16
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