Bernard Tomic played Miami largely to avoid a penalty for missing the tournament, says one of his trainers.
Tomic lost to Jarkko Nieminen 6-0, 6-1 in a record 28 minutes in his first event after having hip surgery on both hips following the Australian Open.
Allistair McCaw, who has worked with several tennis players and is assisting Tomic in his rehab from the hip surgery, wrote on Facebook, "The ATP fines players or awards zero points on rankings for missing tournaments. Players are fined heavily, regardless if they had double hip surgery 5 weeks prior.
"Bernard's choice was simple, get on and off the court ASAP. Maybe it's a message to the system..."
McCaw said Ivan Gutierrez, physio to Lleyton Hewitt, has also been working with Tomic during his recovery.
McCaw added that the criticism Tomic received after the result was unfair, and not for the first time.
Tomic was booed on court when he retired with a groin injury against Rafael Nadal after losing the first set in the opening round of the Australian Open.
The 20-year-old was "hammered by media saying he was faking and tanked, only to have double hip surgery 4 days later," wrote McCaw.