Australian Open: This is how Dominic Thiem could make the big coup
This Thursday the lottery decided what Dominic Thiem's opponents will look like at the Australian Open starting on Monday. We took a closer look at the Austrian draw and have the optimal route to victory in the Grand Slam.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Jan 16, 2020, 07:30 pm
Round one: the first opponent ...
… Is called Adrian Mannarino and comes from France. Dominic Thiem has so far had a clean sheet against the left-hander and was able to win all seven duels. Since 2016, Thiem has never given a sentence against his 31-year-old opponent. By the way, the last meeting was at the Australian Open. In 2018, when Lichtenwörther stormed into the round of 16 with 6: 4 6: 2 and 7: 5. The Austrian shouldn't let anything burn here.
Round two: a compulsory victory ...
… Is waiting for Dominic Thiem in round two. Here the Austrian meets the winner of the encounter between Alex Bolt and Albert Ramos-Vinolas. The 27-year-old Australian Bolt is an old acquaintance of Dominic Thiem. The two were already facing each other in 2012 - at that time still on the Future Tour. It is 1-1 in the head to head, but since the last duel is almost eight years in the past, these statistics are not very meaningful. A look at the world rankings shows the balance of power: Thiem is over 150 places in the front.
However, it is more likely that the Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas will prevail. This is number 42 in the world rankings and was able to defeat Dominic Thiem once in three duels. The last time the two faced each other in the finals of Kitzbühel, where Dominic Thiem celebrated the home win after a two-set win .
Round three: the crux…
... for the Austrian's performance is probably his third appearance. It can be assumed that either Taylor Fritz or Kevin Anderson will face him. In the second round duel of the two, South African Anderson is the easy favorite, although the young American is almost 100 places ahead of him. Anderson's poor placement in the world rankings stems from the long injury break that the two-time Grand Slam finalist had to take last year. At the ATP Cup, however, Anderson was again very strong.
The head to head with Dominic Thiem also speaks for the service giant. Anderson has won seven times in the nine previous duels, the last duel at the ATP Finals 2018 went to the South African.
Should youngster Taylor Fritz prevail, things look much better for Dominic Thiem. The Austrian leads 2-1 in the head-to-head against the 22-year-old - but in the last clash at the Laver Cup, Thiem suffered a bitter defeat.
Round of 16: the dreamless, ...
... if there can be any at a Grand Slam round of 16, Dominic Thiem has caught. Lichtenwörther would be the clear favorite in a possible round of 16 against both Gael Monfils and Felix Auger-Aliassime. Thiem is unbeaten in five duels against the Frenchman Monfils and was able to sweep the 33-year-old in three sets at the last French Open.
Although Thiem and Auger-Aliassime have not yet played a duel, there is a lot to be said for the Austrian: On the one hand, he is 17 places ahead of the Canadian youngster in the world rankings; than convince.
Quarter-finals: a blast…
... could wait in the quarter-finals with Rafael Nadal. The two know each other very well and faced each other in the last two French Open finals. In both games, the Mallorcan was one size too big for Dominic Thiem - and also at the US Open 2018 Nadal kept the upper hand in an absolute thriller in the decision set. So what could be nicer than repaying Rafael Nadal's first Grand Slam of the year? Although the world number one with 9: 4 in head to head is quite clearly in the front, Dominic Thiem would certainly not have a chance in this possible quarter-final duel. In any case, Thiem would have to find his strong form on hard court from the previous year in order to be able to defeat Nadal for the first time in a Grand Slam.
The rise of Nadal to the quarter-finals is anything but carved in stone. The name Nick Kyrgios in the branch of the Spaniard in particular will make many Nadal fans uncomfortable. The local hero is the personalized surprise bag of tennis. If Nick Kyrgios is in the mood, he can beat any player on this planet - Roger Federer knows that too. Like Federer, Nadal has already suffered bitter defeats against the Showman from Australia, but is still head-to-head 4: 3 in front. If Kyrgios should appear like that over long stretches of the ATP Cup, it will be a very hot dance to reach the quarter-finals. Dominic Thiem and Nick Kyrgios met once, the Australian had to give up in the first set. Dominic Thiem would have no objection to a reunion in a Grand Slam quarter-final.
Semifinals: The direct duel ...
... fourth place in the world rankings could go in the semifinals. At the last second the Russian Daniil Medvedev Dominic Thiem had snatched fourth place in the ATP ranking and won the better position at the Australian Open. Only a few points separate the two in the world rankings, so this duel is about nothing less than the role of the first chaser of the big three in the ATP ranking. A victory Thiem in this duel would be a small sensation, Daniil Medvedev has presented himself in extremely good shape on hard court in recent months. Although the Austrian is 2-1 in the front in head to head , Thiem got under the wheel in the last encounter. But once Thiem is in the semi-finals, the Lichtenwörther can do everything. Thiem has impressively demonstrated what he can do at the ATP Finals.
For the sake of completeness, the number six on the seed list, Alexander Zverev, should also be mentioned here. But the German is in an absolute form crisis and would have to turn 180 degrees to have a say in the Australian Open. That the stuff of the Grand Slam Champion slumbers in the German is undisputed - this is shown not least by his sensational success at the ATP Finals 2018. Dominic Thiem would be the favorite in a semi-final against Zverev, as he is 6: 2 in the head to head in front and was able to win the last duel at the ATP Finals relatively clearly.
Finale: the last hurdle…
… Novak Djokovic would be the big triumph. After his strong performance at the ATP Cup, where he won the title for Serbia almost unbeaten, the Serb is the top favorite in Melbourne. Against Djokovic, however, Thiem has a very reasonable record: last year the Austrian won two of the three duels, even defeating the "Djoker" at the ATP finals on hard court. Of course, it is something completely different to want Novak Djokovic to contest his eighth (!) Australian Open title. No other player has the down under conditions as much as the world ranking second.
But Roger Federer also wants to have a word at the Australian Open. Far from the ATP Cup, the maestro is preparing for the new season and will probably be relaxed like no other player in the first Grand Slam of the year. Dominic Thiem also has very positive memories of Roger Federer, as he was able to celebrate his greatest success in a duel with the Swiss and won the ATP Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells. And in the last duel between the two, the Lichtenwörther kept the upper hand and defeated Federer in the opening match of the ATP finals in two sets.
The Austrian tennis fans have to wait until Tuesday until Dominic Thiem will join the tournament. At the Australian Open, Thiem has the chance to be the second Austrian after Thomas Muster to win a single Grand Slam title. What could suit this project better than Thomas Muster himself, who will sit next to Nicholas Massu in Dominic Thiem's box.
Here you will find the crispest first round matches and the paths of the big favorites at a glance.
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