What's Next? ATP No. 6, Tomas Berdych

Our What's Next? series looks at every player who finished in the ATP or WTA Top 10 this season, and considers their future in three different ways.

Berdych is just 27, but it seems like we’ve been waiting forever for this rangy and mobile baseliner to crack the Grand Slam code. He’s been inconsistent from year to year, though he first climbed as high as his present No. 6 ranking back in 2010. But while the Czech seems less moody and unpredictable than in the past, he still seems to find ways to sabotage himself and come up short on big occasions.

Although he has had trouble closing out tight matches, Berdych can also pull off some major suprises—as he did when he upended Roger Federer in the quarterfinals of the 2012 U.S. Open. That tells you mostly that he doesn’t really like the pressure of expectations; he lost in the next round to (the very good) Andy Murray.  

In international play, where the spotlight is at its greatest, Berdych was a mixed bag. He was beaten in the first round at the London Olympics by world No. 75 by Steve Darcis, and four months later lost a Davis Cup-clinching rubber. But that was after Berdych won two matches in the final—along with eight other rubbers in the Czech Republic’s Cup-winning 2012 campaign.  

Best Case Scenario: Berdych is sometimes mocked as “Tinman” rather than the more familiar “Birdman,” which is cruel but it makes the point: If Berdych can figure out how to become a better, stronger, more mentally and emotionally capable competitor on big occasions, he could win a Grand Slam tournament.

Worst Case Scenario: The negativity, insecurity, and foul moods that sometimes seem to plague Berdych remain a major impediment to his success. A player with those tendencies is always one loss away from spiraling into a slump—something Berdych has avoided pretty well since he made the Wimbledon final in 2010.

Australian Open Outlook: Sheesh, who knows with this guy? In his last five editions of the tournament, he’s lost to either Novak Djokovic, Federer (twice), or Rafael Nadal. Yet the other loss was in the second round in 2010, in straight sets to world No. 53 Eugene Korolev. Berdych’s first task: Avoid the early round upset.

More What's Next?

**- ATP No. 10, Richard Gasquet

- WTA No. 10, Caroline Wozniacki<em>*  

- ATP No. 9, Janko Tipsarevic
- WTA No. 9, Sam Stosur
*- ATP No. 8, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

- WTA No. 8, Petra Kvitova**  

- ATP No. 7, Juan Martin del Potro
- WTA No. 7, Li Na
- ATP No. 6, Tomas Berdych
- WTA No. 6, Sara Errani