Melbourne VIC, Australia, 25 February 2014 | tennis.com.au

Bernard Tomic is likely to make his return to tennis at the Monte Carlo Masters following a lengthy absence due to hip surgery.

An article appearing in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald on Tuesday reports that Tomic is easing back into training after surgeries on both his left and right hip.

The procedure – performed the week following his withdrawal from his Australian Open first round match against Rafael Nadal – aimed to correct a structural abnormality in the head of Tomic’s femur, a problem the 21-year-old has apparently been carrying for much of his career.

Now fixed, this will hopefully allow him greater range of motion and flexibility when covering the court.

Journalist Linda Pearce writes that Tomic has been swimming and cycling in his time away from the court, and has recently resumed hitting tennis balls from a stationary position.

A return to action in Monte Carlo would fit in with the 12-week postoperative period and would come on clay, a surface thought to be more forgiving on the body.

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