ATP Finals London: Dominic Thiem - It gets even better
Dominic Thiem has achieved an excellent position with his success against Roger Federer at the ATP Finals in London. On Tuesday he plays against Novak Djokovic for the semi-finals.
by Jens Huiber
last edit: Nov 11, 2019, 09:37 am
By Jens Huiber from London
"C'est pas possible" was to be heard on the crowded stands of the O2 Arena after errors of the maestro: "That is not possible." Yes. It was. Because Sunday night was Dominic Thiem's. Sparkling, nimble, alert, courageous - that's how the Austrian number one played the 7: 5 and 7: 5 against the Maestro, who now has to win both matches against Novak Djokovic and Matteo Berrettini to have a chance to reach the semi-finals ,
The prospects for that are much better for Thiem. Not only because of the result, but also the mentioned way can expect a lot for the daily meeting with Djokovic. Thiem played twice against the Serb this year, narrowly losing in Madrid and narrower in Roland Garros. Djokovic was only 63 minutes in his first appearance with Berrettini bim 6: 2 and 6: 1. Thiem needed about three quarters of an hour more against Federer.
First opening victory for Thiem in London
Dominic Thiem was of course already clear in the on-court interview that he had just made a premiere: for the first time the Austrian could win a first match match at the season finale. Last year, Thiem lost to Kevin Anderson, 2017 against Grigor Dimitrov, in his first appearance in London against Novak Djokovic. Since then, Thiem has improved steadily, never before has he come so fit for the last big event of the tennis year.
Federer, on the other hand, seemed too slow in some phases, especially sloppy in the early stages of volleys. But the maestro was in a hurry to come to the press conference. The Swiss did not save with praise for his conqueror: "I think Dominic has rescued from some situations really well," said Federer. "He delivered a strong first-round performance, and my game was probably just not good enough, and the bad start did not help either."
Conditions not only per Federer
Although Dominic Thiem could not make his first break through to the end of the first set - in the eleventh game he got the service Federers. And made the match with a little bit stomachache. He did not want to imagine what would have happened had Federer made it 6: 6 in the second set, Thiem explained at his press conference. Of course, very satisfied, especially with return and serve. Although the rate of the first after the opening rate was only 46 percent. "But those who did not go into the field were not far off," says Thiem. That gave him the certainty that he could rely on his service in tight situations. But of course there is still room for improvement in this regard.
Incidentally, the speedy conditions were not only disadvantageous: after the ball did not jump too high, he could play his backhand at a comfortable height, according to Thiem. For Roger Federer, with whom many fans had joined this Sunday evening, in an all too comfortable height.