Dominic Thiem and the failed dress rehearsal
Dominic Thiem started the new season with two losses. At the start of the Mudabala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, the world's number 8 lost to Karen Khachanov from Russia. In the game for 5th place, Thiem was the loser against South Korean Hyeon Chung.
by Florian Heer
last edit: Dec 28, 2018, 05:21 pm
By Florian Heer from Abu Dhabi
A successful start to a new tennis year looks different. But Dominic Thiem could at least gather match practice at the desert tournament in the capital of the United Arab Emirates before the official ATP tour 2019 starts in Doha next week.
Even though there were two defeats, I am not disappointed.
Dominic Thiem
"The days here in Abu Dhabi were very useful for me," said Thiem on Friday afternoon. “Even though there were two defeats, I'm not disappointed. It was two matches against two strong opponents. It was also time to try something else. I am happy to get the match feeling again. ”
Fast court in Abu Dhabi
The conditions in the Zayed Sports City did not seem to have particularly accommodated the 25-year-old Austria. “The surface here is very fast. I didn't expect it so quickly, ”admitted Thiem, who joined the“ MWTC ”for the second time after 2017.
"It was not easy to play. I first had to get used to the conditions here. In general, however, my results on hard court have improved. "
Search for a second trainer continues
Thiem, who is only in Abu Dhabi with his brother Moritz and will compete in Qatar without coach Günter Bresnik, is still looking for a second coach. “I hope to have found further support before the long trip to South America. However, I'm also used to being more or less alone on the tour. It worked quite well for the tournament win in St. Petersburg. There was just a good friend there. ”
New Year's Eve in Qatar
The short trip to Doha will start tomorrow, Friday. "I will be on site at noon and if I do not intervene in the tournament until Tuesday, I have three full days to prepare myself on site," Thiem is looking forward to starting at the Qatar Exxon Mobil Open. The Austrian will be number two behind Novak Djokovic. He reached the semi-finals last year.
Only the New Year's Eve party will be a little less pompous in the Arabian Gulf. "Without missiles," laughs Thiem and wishes health for the coming year. "The past three years have been very enjoyable on tennis and I hope it will continue like this."