Tennis coach John Tomic faces assault charge in Spain

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MADRID, May 6 (UPI) -- The father and coach of Australian tennis star Bernard Tomic is under investigation in an assault on Tomic's practice partner in Madrid, officials said.

John Tomic will appear in court, after Thomas Drouet was left unconscious with a broken nose and fractured vertebrae following an altercation outside the official hotel of the Madrid Masters tennis tournament, the newspaper The Australian reported Monday.

Drouet, a Frenchman, and the elder Tomic have been feuding since Drouet intervened in a dispute between father and son during a recent practice session at the Monte Carlo Country Club in Monaco, the newspaper said, citing reports in French newspapers.

The elder Tomic allegedly was taken into police custody with blood visible on his face, and has since contacted an Australian journalist to deny he was in jail, although he did not confirm or deny if he had been in custody during the weekend, the newspaper said.