Venus Williams has caused some confusion among fans and fellow professionals by naming failed Australian tennis player Bernard Tomic as one of her favourite all-time players.
The revelation came out in her recent WTA autobiography. Williams names the likes of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and sister Serena alongside the likes of Tomic as the players she most likes.
Tomic was once a promising young talent. At the beginning of his career he won two junior Grand Slam singles titles, four ATP titles, and made a quarter final appearance at the Wimbledon Championships, all of which led to an impressive ranking of World No. 17.
However, the 30-year-old's ranking plummeted to as low as 825 in 2022 and he is currently trying to revive his faltering career in lower-ranked tournaments.
Tomic also courted controversy when appearing to give up halfway through matches, openly claiming that he didn't care about the outcome in post match conferences, and that he prefers to sit back and 'count his millions'.
Despite coming across as a largely vacuous and unambitious player, there can be no denying Tomic's early talent. It will have come of great frustration to Tennis Australia and Australian tennis fans that such potential was ultimately squandered.
Th e once promising Australian is now ranked 435 and was denied a wildcard entry into Australian Open qualifying, forced to play a Challenger Tour event in Qatar instead.
The good news for Tomic at least, is he had received a mention as a favourite player of one of the biggest names the sport has to offer.
While little consolation for fans of the young Australian, it will no doubt be music to Bernard's ears. Who knows, perhaps it could be the spark of inspiration needed to have a late-career revival after years in the wilderness.
Only time will tell.
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