ATP Challenger Rennes: A lawn expert demands Dominic Thiem
Dominic Thiem meets British Ryan Peniston in the round of 16 of the ATP Challenger tournament in Rennes. The left-hander has already celebrated an outstanding match win this season.
by Jens Huiber
last edit:
Sep 15, 2022, 11:05 am
Ryan Peniston's work records on the ATP tour are not outstanding in quantitative terms (five wins, three defeats), but the 26-year-old Briton can at least claim to have beaten the man who played twice in the final of a Grand this season -Slam tournament: Peniston caught Casper Ruud ice cold in London's Queen's Club and won the first round match against the Norwegian with 7:6 (4) and 7.6 (2). Now Ruud is seen as a man who prefers to play golf on grass rather than tennis, please.
There are a total of eight games that Peniston played on the "big" ATP tour this year, five of them victorious. Tonight in Rennes, none will be added, the tournament in France feels part of the Challenger Tour. But even there you can catch a Grand Slam champion. Just like Dominic Thiem.
Thiem double digits against Simon
The Austrian started a little slowly against Gilles Simon, but then complimented the French without any danger at first and then sent a few nice words afterwards about the imminent end of his career. On Tuesday evening, Thiem struggled with the external circumstances almost as much as with his opponent. After a shoe change, the game took its expected course, Thiem is now in double digits when it comes to victories against Gilles Simon.
The 29-year-old from Lower Austria faces different challenges against Peniston than against Simon. The latter cultivates the good old game of chess from the baseline, while Peniston shows up regularly at the net. It remains to be seen whether the rather slow indoor floor in Rennes will benefit him.
Dominic Thiem has played more important tournaments than the one in Rennes. In "normal" years he would probably pause at the moment. And mentally prepare for an appearance at the Laver Cup next week in London. However, in order to be eligible for an invitation to the continental comparison again, it would still be helpful if Thiem were to slightly worsen the balance sheet at challenger level (19:12) for lawn expert Ryan Peniston.