Tennis: Bernard Tomic withdraws from Melbourne Summer Series ahead of Australian Open

Bernard Tomic has his eye on the ball. Photo / News Corp Australia

Bernard Tomic will head to the Australian Open without any match practice after a last-minute withdrawal from the Murray River Open.

Withdrawing just hours before he was scheduled to step onto Margaret Court Arena for his first round clash with Aussie Marc Polmans, Tomic told Melbourne Summer Series officials he would not be competing.

He is reported to have pulled out with a knee injury.

His withdrawal has raised eyebrows further after he was scheduled to face Nick Kyrgios in the second round.

Kyrgios earlier this month took a light-hearted shot at Tomic's girlfriend Vanessa Sierra over the couple's bizarre videos posted on social media.

"I don't mind Bernie but his Mrs obviously has no perspective, ridiculous scenes," Kyrgios posted.

It came after Sierra shared an intimate view of the couple's quarantine room, revealing they have been stuck inside playing video games up to 11 hours a day.

She also complained about the food that'd been provided, as well as other hardships, bemoaning the lack of access to a professional hairdresser.

"This is the worst part of quarantine: I don't wash my own hair. I've never washed my own hair. It's just not something that I do. I normally have hairdressers that do it twice a week for me, so this is the situation that we're dealing with," Sierra said.

Tomic, meanwhile, posted a video of himself playing basketball at Melbourne's Grand Hyatt Hotel just hours before reports emerged of his knee complaint.

Tomic now has seven days to shake off the cobwebs before the Australian Open begins on February 8 where he will walk onto court without any match practice following his two weeks in hotel quarantine.

Having won all three matches during the Australian Open qualifying event in Doha, Tomic earlier this month said girlfriend Sierra is the reason for his micro run of good form.

"My girlfriend's coaching me actually," Tomic told AAP journalist Darren Walton.

"She's just helping me with a few things. We've managed to win eight matches. Quite good, it's a new tactic for 2021."

When asked if he was serious, Tomic replied: "Dead set, mate. Of course, 100 per cent".

"I mean, I've won eight out of nine matches. I think I won five out of the six UTR. They were all three-setters."

When asked how Sierra has helped him in his run of wins, Tomic refused to reveal the secret.

"Mate, it's a secret. It's a secret," Tomic said.

"I'm not going to give out my tips, you know what I mean?

"Happy wife, happy life. That's it, my man."

In a typical Tomic interview, the former teenage sensation said he intends to play until he is 35-years-old while also admitting he still refuses to devote his time towards his tennis.

His latest withdrawal proves it.