Confident Australian youngster Bernard Tomic says he has put the dramas of 2012 behind him and is aiming to surge into the world's top 10 next year.
Australian youngster Bernard Tomic, pictured during a press conference in Shanghai, on October 9, 2012. Confident Tomic now says he has put the dramas of 2012 behind him and is aiming to surge into the world's tennis top 10 next year.
The 20-year-old was expected to emerge as one of the new stars of tennis this year, but instead his ranking slipped from a career best of 27 in June to 52 at season's end as he battled controversy on and off the court.
A quarter-finalist at Wimbledon in 2011, his playing stocks plummeted when he was accused of tanking by former great John McEnroe in his 6-3 6-4 6-0 second-round loss to Andy Roddick at the US Open.
He was knocked out in the second round at the French Open and first round at Wimbledon, and won just seven of his last 21 matches of the season.
Off the court, he was found guilty of failing to stop for police in January, just days after reaching the fourth round of the Australian Open in impressive fashion, and again made headlines after a scuffle with a friend on his birthday in October.
Speaking in Perth as he prepared for the mixed teams Hopman Cup, he said he had been working harder than ever during the off season and claimed fans would see a more mature player in 2013.
"I am not looking back anymore, I am looking forward," he said of his past dramas.
"I am focusing on a big 2013 and getting my ranking back up to where it should be. I'd like to reach the top 10 by the end of the year.
"I'm sure if I do the right things and commit, like I've agreed to myself, I'll do quite well. This year was a big learning year for me.
"If I keep my head down and keep working like I have been the last two months, I'll get results."