Tomic revival grows in 46-min rout as biggest opponent in years looms after shock admission

Bernard Tomic’s remarkable resurgence has continued, with the Australian producing his most dominant ATP Tour performance in years to snap a drought that stretched back more than four seasons.

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Tomic dismantled Mexico’s Alex Hernandez 6-1, 6-0 in just 46 minutes in Los Cabos, recording his first ATP Tour main-draw hard-court victory since the 2021 Australian Open.

The 33-year-old was untouchable from the opening point, storming to a 5-0 lead in the opening set before cruising through the second without giving Hernandez any opportunity to fight back.

Tomic converted five of his seven break point chances, never faced a break point on his own serve and struck 15 winners in one of the most clinical performances of his comeback.

Currently ranked No. 171 in the world, Tomic comfortably accounted for world No. 489 Hernandez to book a blockbuster round-of-16 clash against world No. 26 Karen Khachanov.

It marks Tomic’s first ATP Tour main-draw hard-court victory since Melbourne Park in 2021, when he defeated Japan’s Yuichi Sugita before falling to Denis Shapovalov the following round.

The emphatic win comes less than two weeks after Tomic claimed the Lincoln Challenger title, his biggest tournament triumph since lifting the Chengdu ATP 250 trophy in 2018, suggesting the former world No. 17 is building genuine momentum.

That title almost never happened.

After the victory in Lincoln, Tomic admitted he had seriously considered walking away from professional tennis after hitting what he described as a “brick wall” just weeks earlier.

“I’ll be as honest as I can, about 10 days ago I hit a bit of a brick wall, maybe two weeks ago,” Tomic said.

“I said this was going to be my last year, so I guess I have to reassess a few things now.

“Now that I won, I’m going to have to go back to the table. I’m probably going to play another 20 years.”

It’s another significant chapter in Tomic’s career revival, 17 years after he burst onto the scene by becoming the third-youngest Challenger champion in history at just 16, behind only Michael Chang and Richard Gasquet.

Now, after flirting with retirement just weeks ago, the 33-year-old suddenly has genuine momentum once again.

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