Even though Dominic Thiem recently made it to the semi-finals in the 250 tournaments in Gijon and Antwerp, Austria’s tennis star sees himself on today’s “Thiemstag” at the Erste Bank Open 500 in the Wiener Stadthalle (not before 5:30 p.m., ORF 1 and ServusTV) against Tommy Paul (WRL No. 30) in the underdog position. “Two weeks ago or a little more, victories against the top 30 – where Paul is – were almost a sensation. And not much has changed,” said the 29-year-old from Lichtenwörther, who is 113th in the current world rankings appears. Postscript: “It would be a huge thing to win this match.” The former US Open champion does not want to think further ahead that there could be a duel with the Russian Daniil Medvedev (WRL No. 4) in the round of 16.
The top 100 takes precedence
Thiem has been practicing humility since his severe wrist injury on June 22, 2021 in Mallorca. He experienced first-hand how rocky the way back to the top is. “A lot of things used to be taken for granted,” he muses. “Before it was all uphill. In mid-2016 I was in the top ten and stayed there until the injury,” Thiem looks back.
“It was clear then that I – with the exception of Wimbledon – would be one of the favorites to go to all the big tournaments. You lose sight of reality a bit.” And as you know, it can be tough.
“The injury showed me how difficult it actually is and how much work it takes to make it to the top,” explained the 17-time ATP tournament winner. “Now two good weeks like Gijon and Antwerp certainly feel better than a 1000 or a Grand Slam quarter-final used to be. To a certain extent I’m glad that I appreciate it a lot more through the difficult time have learned.” If Thiem has his way, the home event in Vienna, where around 8,000 spectators are expected today, will not be the last tournament this year. The Lower Austrian has applied for a wild card for Paris-Bercy (from October 31). Thiem definitely wants to return to the top 100 in the world this year, so he would also add one or the other challenger tournament.
This is the stage where Jurij Rodionov is usually at home. The 23-year-old, who has a wild card, also has his first assignment in Vienna today (around 3.30 p.m., ServusTV). “I’m hot for the game, I can play freely,” emphasized the world number 130. before the showdown with Denis Shapovalov (WRL #19). Dennis Novak (WRL No. 155) will not take his turn against Stefanos Tsitsipas (WRL No. 5) until Wednesday.
Misolic had no chance
For debutant Filip Misolic (WRL No. 150), the Vienna week is already over. The sensational finalist from Kitzbühel was down 3: 6, 3: 6 against Francisco Cerundolo (Arg/WRL No. 29) after 70 minutes and only had one break opportunity.
Source: Nachrichten
