The racket sport has witnessed a lot of greats across decades. In modern days, fans have seen the likes of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner emerging as the icons. But then there is a different side that no one wants to see. It offers nothing beyond disappointment to those, forgotten faces who were once touted to become the future of tennis. Take for example a 32-year-old Australian ATP player. Once, he received a huge shoutout a decade ago from American legend John McEnroe. Fast forward to 2025, the script has flipped.

In 2011, Bernard Tomic, then aged 18, reached the QF of just his second campaign at Wimbledon. His highest career ranking of No. 17 back grabbed the attention of American icon and 7-time slam champion John McEnroe in 2012, who predicted that “Bernard has got more upside than any young guy I see out there,” he told in a media interaction in 2012. “He has developed a great deal. He’s a very savvy player for a young kid. He’s going to get stronger; make the breakthrough and win some majors.”

Unfortunately, the reality has been far from expectations. Once a top 20 player, he is now struggling to even enter the top 150. Currently ranked 181st in the world, the 32-year-old is perhaps not what he was touted to be in his early days. Even Tomic had this epiphany lately. Talking to L’Equipe, he admitted, “I have nothing left in the engine, I’m completely dry.” For him, now it is only “a question of motivation” when it comes to playing. “But I still find fun in it. I do this to challenge myself.”

He further mentioned, “I had gone down near the top 1000 not so long ago, now I’m aiming for the top 100. And if I get in, I’ll see if it still motivates me.” All things considered, however, Tomic knows he is not that prodigy who was seen as a slam winner.

His quarterfinal run in 2011 Wimbledon remains his best yet in a major event. He concluded, “we’re not going to lie to each other, I would never find my prime like when I was in the top 20.”

A brief look at Bernard Tomic’s decline in recent years

After making waves at Wimbledon, Bernard Tomic went on to have some decent campaigns for the next five-six years. When he entered the last eight in London, he was outside the top 100. From there, the Australian went on to enter the top 50 and eventually found his way into the top 20.

In January 2016, he achieved his career-best ranking of No.17. In the same year, he again made it to the top 20 list while capturing the 19th spot. Sadly, that was the last time he stayed there. His journey went downhill so much so that he hit rock-bottom in his career going forward.

In March 2018, Tomic was ranked as low as 1,042 on the ATP list. But that wasn’t the end of his misery. Later in the same year, in June, the Australian pro fell down to the 1,250th spot. And three years later, in November 2022, he came down to the 2,336th position.

Fortunately, Tomic has come a long way in the last three years. Still, being a player outside of the top 150 is no reason to feel happy about yourself. With only four career titles so far, clearly he has struggled to succeed as prophesied back in the day. It will be intriguing to see how long can he continue to find any kind of “motivation” to keep playing.