Australian tennis bully Bernard Tomic secured an inglorious record at the ATP Challenger tournament in Fairfield, USA, at the weekend. The enfant terrible suffered an unprecedented defeat in the final against local hero Learner Tien.
Bernhard Tomic once again made short work of his opponent in the final of the ATP Challenger tournament in Fairfield – but not with his opponent. After just 39 minutes, the former number 17 in the world rankings had to admit defeat 0:6 and 1:6. His defeat was the fastest defeat in the history of the ATP Challenger Series.
The previous record for the fastest final defeat was held by the Israeli Dudi Sela, who needed 43 minutes to congratulate his opponent Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final in Cassis/France in the 2019 season.
Tennis bully now holds two records
What makes Tomic’s lightning defeat even more remarkable: The 31-year-old now not only holds the record for the fastest final defeat on the Challenger series, but also for the fastest final defeat on the ATP Tour. Here he caused an inglorious highlight in Miami in 2014 when he lost 0:6 and 1:6 against the Finn Jarkko Nieminen in just 28 minutes.
The fact that Tomic, of all people, holds the records for the two fastest final defeats doesn’t really come as a surprise. The Australian has been considered perhaps the funniest diva in the tennis business for many years. Over the course of his career, the 31-year-old repeatedly caused outrage and serious scandals.
Tomic himself has stated several times in recent years that he doesn’t care more or less about his dubious reputation. He also emphasized that he was only playing for the prize money and that he had built his career with only 50 percent effort. “I just count the money. That’s all I do. I count my millions,” he said in 2018 after missing qualifying for the Australian Open.
