Australian Tennis player Bernard Tomic has been fined over $80 000 by Wimbledon, stripping him of his grand slam prize money.
This comes after Tomic lost 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in just 58 minutes at the All England Club, in what was the shortest men’s singles match at SW19 since 2004.
WATCH Bernard Tomic insult Lleyton Hewitt
Wimbledon released a statement on Thursday, ordering the fine.
“It is the opinion of the Referee that the performance of Bernard Tomic in his first round match against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga did not meet the required professional standards, and therefore he has been fined the maximum amount of £45,000 which will be deducted from prize money.”
Tomic’s lack of effort cost him a fine of $80,601, equalling the amount of prize money he earned from his first-round loss.
“I just played terrible,” Tomic said his post-match-press conference.
“I returned pretty bad. Didn’t see his serve. Pretty terrible match. Played well last week. This week, tough first round. I knew if I didn’t feel good I’d lose this match quickly.”
When questioned about the possibility of a fine, Tomic replied, “What for?”
Tomic was also asked if he had given his best effort, to which he said, “Next question, please”.
The Aussie’s quick 58-minute loss resulted in him winning $1723 for each of his 47 points.
“All players are expected to perform to a professional standard in every Grand Slam match. With respect to First Round Performance, if in the opinion of the Referee the player did not perform to the required professional standard, the Referee may determine that the player be subject to a fine of up to first round prize money” the statement from Wimbledon said.
Spectators of the match have dubbed the Aussie “Tom the tank” on Twitter.
One user wrote “Tomic the tank engine – a disgrace.”
His opponent, Tsonga said that Tomic’s fine has negated his own performance.
“It’s like what I did was not win. It’s like I was just here and I just won because, they said, he didn’t play enough,” the French tennis player said.
Fellow Aussie tennis player Nick Kyrgios disagreed with the heavy fine, calling it “outrageous.”
“I don’t agree with fining the guy all of his prize money. He earned his right to be in the draw. He played the whole year. He’s obviously winning enough to be at the most prestigious tournament in the world. To take all his prize money I think is outrageous.”
The statement also said Tomic would have the chance to appeal the fine to the Director, GSB.
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