| Saturday, 27 June 2009 Written by Michael Burke-Velji Unusually for a junior match scheduled for 11am you could not find a spare seat on Court 7, with its famous grass bank viewing area covered with Brits and Aussies eager to see Bernard Tomic, No.3 seed in the boys' event, take on Briton George Morgan in the first round.The 16-year-old Australian, who lost in the semi-final last year, is favourite for the title, and displayed the variety and skill in his game to overcome Morgan, a tough competitor and one for the future, 7-6, 6-2. It was clear that despite the early start, there was going to be a lively atmosphere, given the abundance of British flags and yellow-and-green T-shirts. Among the crowd to watch Morgan were Greg Rusedski, Laura Robson, Roger Draper, head of the LTA, and Paul Annacone, the head coach of the British men’s game. Both boys started the match well with Morgan matching Tomic blow-for-blow and even settting up two break point chances. But Tomic kept his cool and held serve. “I am suffering with a virus and in the first set I was struggling. Nothing was going in my favour. I don’t know much about Morgan but he’s a good player and played well at the start,” the No.3 seed said afterwards. Tomic battled his way to a tiebreak, having been denied a set point in the 12th game by the intelligent Morgan. The set was won by being patient in the long rallies with the Brit earning a few cheap points on his big first serve, hitting six aces and 14 winners. The British charge capitulated in the tiebreak as Tomic seized that 7-1. From there on in, the Australian controlled the match with much greater ease. “I think I was more experienced and knew what I had to do in the tiebreak and it worked out well for me,” said Tomic. It only took the third game in the second set for the Australian to steal the first of three break points that was enough to stop the more aggressive game plan of Morgan desperate to strike back and claim a famous victory. But Tomic was able to exploit the spaces in the court and frequently wrong-footed Morgan with cleverly disguised shots as he appeared to forget about his virus for the duration of the second set and maintained the high percentage of first serves. “Being the only Australian in the draw it was great to see the fans turn up in the morning to support,” said Tomic. “It made up for my lack of energy out there early on. Hopefully I can build from here, I came close last year. I want to win this one as it would be great to win two junior Grand Slams.” “I know I’m there. I have lots of confidence playing well over the last six months. Australian Open second round was a great experience for me, and my preparation on grass at the Wimbledon qualifiers has helped me on my way to build something special.”
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