Coach and commentator Darren Cahill tells *The Changeover*that John Tomic, who has been on trial in Spain for allegedly assaulting his son Bernard’s hitting partner, isn’t exactly getting a fair shake.
“I think that his dad’s been an incredibly good influence for him. Everyone’s different. The culture of where they grew up is completely different from the culture of where you grew up, where I grew up. He had a tough life as a parent, moving the family to Germany. Bernie was born in Germany, and then moving the family to Australia with no money. He did it the hard way. He was the guy that put Bernie on the court all those hours as a youngster. He’s invested his life in helping Bernie become a tennis player and achieve his dream. He’s no angel, and this criticism that’s been thrown his way, he deserves. But there’s also some criticism I feel like he doesn’t deserve.”
John Tomic is currently banned form ATP tour events and Bernard is traveling without a coach. Cahill got to know the two of them when he was a Davis Cup coach.
“You just have to see the connection between Bernie and John when they talk about each other – it’s incredibly strong,” he said. “Bernie really misses his father with him not being around, so you have to respect that. At some stage, the timing will be right for Bernie to bring somebody in. He doesn’t want a piece of that at the moment because he wants his dad there. So until Bernie is ready, that won’t happen.”