Dominic Thiem - Indian Wells as an ambitious long-term goal
Dominic Thiem had to postpone his return to the ATP tour again on Monday. After another injury break, the Austrian's long-term goal is the Masters 1000 tournament in Indian Wells.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: Feb 01, 2022, 11:33 am
Dominic Thiem announced on Monday that he would have to postpone his comeback again. The Austrian is struggling with a torn ligament between his fingers on his right hand and can therefore not start at the ATP 250 tournament in Cordoba. According to Thiem, at least with the wrist, there are no longer any problems.
Thiem left open on Monday when he would return to the tour. "You don't know how long that will take, either just a few days or two weeks, that will show in the next few days," said the 2020 US Open winner in a press round. Originally, the Lichtenwörther wanted to play at the event in Buenos Aires next week.
Thiem still needs some time
But regardless of whether it works out with a start in the Argentine metropolis or not: Thiem's fans should not have too high hopes yet. "Even if I play tournaments, I don't see myself as competitive now," said the world number 37. That will take a few more weeks.
"A comeback after such a serious injury always goes step by step. I've already taken a lot of steps, but I'm still missing a few very important ones," added Thiem. These include training sets with other players and ultimately the first match after his injury break.
Thiem: "I have the hardest part behind me"
Basically, Thiem was optimistic that he would soon be back among the best in the world: "On the way back, I'm 90 to 95 percent behind me, i.e. the hardest part. The last five percent will also be tough, but I'm sure that I will come back full very soon."
Soon, according to Thiem's assessment, that could be the case at the first ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the year. "Indian Wells is still five to six weeks away. If everything goes according to plan, I may be fully competitive again there." The event in the Californian desert, which Thiem won in 2019, starts on March 10th.