Dominic Thiem: "I'm leaving Madrid happy"
Dominic Thiem can look back on a successful tournament in Madrid. In singles, the Austrian reached the semi-finals, in doubles he only failed on the side of Diego Schwartzman at the final hurdle. Compared to Tennisnet.com and another German-speaking media representative, the 25-year-old reviews the event in Madrid and gives an outlook on the coming weeks.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: May 13, 2019, 10:41 am
Dominic Thiem can look back on a successful week in Madrid. He defeated Swiss Roger Federer in the quarter-finals and only barely defeated Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. Now the journey continues to Rome, where the next Masters 1000 tournament will take place.
Was the double fun today?
Sure, every double with Diego (note: Schwartzman) is fun. We also never expected to be in the final. A final in a Masters 1000 tournament is crazy in a double. So I was allowed to play in Madrid on Sunday. A cup for the showcase at home is always something nice and whenever I play a double final it is totally unexpected. I am almost more happy about it than in the individual. It was a nice week. It was also a very, very good week in singles and I leave Madrid happy and looking forward to Rome.
Philipp Oswald, Jürgen Melzer and Jurij Rodionov all won doubles titles at Challenger level at the weekend. You left out today ...
(laughs) I failed. We have always had good doubles and that is also important for the Davis Cup. We know that Jürgen plays an incredible double anyway. I can convince myself again next week. If Rodionov plays doubles well, it is also good for the future of the Davis Cup.
So is the double not just a minor matter for you?
Yes, sure. It will always be a minor matter. A very important minor thing, but still the single is the main reason why I am here. It was a very busy week - this is also due to the double. In Rome I will play again fully and then I will reduce the whole thing a bit by the end of the year, I think.
When are you flying to Rome?
Even today. I fly to Rome at 9:00 p.m. and arrive there at 11:30 p.m. Then I sleep in and will train with Diego in the afternoon tomorrow. Rome is completely different again. The conditions are different, the balls will certainly fly differently there. It is important that I have a good training session tomorrow. It is already agreed that I will play doubles on Tuesday and singles on Wednesday. Of course I'm a little tired now, but I have three days to regenerate and should be in top shape again by Wednesday.
The second round is against Fernando Verdasco or Kyle Edmund. What do you think?
If you look at the grids in Madrid and Rome, it is abnormal how strong the tournaments are. I have a very difficult draw, but there are really only horrorless people. I believe Goffin will play Wawrinka in the first round and the winner will meet del Potro. So there are only hammerless people in the entire grid, because everyone also plays along. Federer has agreed. So I have to take it as it comes. It will be very, very difficult, of course, but I'm trying to keep my good level that I definitely have right now. Then we'll see what comes out.
Nadal, then Federer and then Djokovic may be waiting in the quarterfinals. What is it like to possibly have to beat the three best players in a row?
It's not a nice view (laughs). I failed the second hurdle this week. If I reach the quarter-final against Nadal, the tournament in Rome would be very good, I would say. Everything else is a bonus. As I said: From the first round it gets really, really difficult because Verdasco or Edmund is waiting.
You mentioned that you feel a little tired. So is the tournament in Lyon no longer an option?
No. After I won in Barcelona, this option was canceled. I also did not register. If I had played badly in Barcelona, here and in Rome, I might have inserted it and got a wildcard. After winning in Barcelona and playing very well here, this is definitely not an option.