First Masters title! Dominic Thiem beats Roger Federer in the Indian Wells final
Dominic Thiem won an ATP Masters 1000 tournament for the first time. The Lower Austrian defeated five-time champion Roger Federer in the Indian Wells final 3: 6, 6: 3 and 7: 5 and celebrated his twelfth triumph on the tour.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Mar 18, 2019, 02:22 am
Federer is known as a front runner, a player who plays all the better with a lead. An early break for the Swiss is therefore poison for the respective opponent - and Dominic Thiem had to swallow this poison. Although the Austrian leveled 0:40 at first, the fourth breakball Federers then sat to 2: 0.
Thiem got two chances to make a comeback in the seventh game, use the second with a precise forehand ball on the baseline. But Federer immediately struck back, using his fourth break chance with a backhand ball along the line to 5: 3. And served after 37 minutes of play to 6: 3.
In the second round, Thiem had to fend off two breakballs - but then it was the Austrian who won Federer's serve to 3: 1. And served without wobbling after 1:14 hours to 6: 3. Fully deserved, especially in the longer rallies, the 25-year-old Lichtenwörther was able to take command more and more often.
In the decision, both players initially played their service games without any problems. In the eighth game Federer found a break chance, Thiem refused. And after a game that lasted seven and a half minutes, he equalized to 4: 4. Federer was a little more confident when it came to service, Thiem did not allow himself to be ripped off in the final phase. And took the chance to score 6: 5 with two soulful passing balls and took the lead with a forehand winner. And closed the sack after 2:02 hours of play.
After the match, Thiem explained that he first had to get used to Federer's game, after all the Swiss put it on like no other in the tennis circuit.
With his twelfth tournament success on the tour, Thiem moved up to fourth place in the ATP world rankings, followed by Federer immediately after the second final loss in Indian Wells en suite. The two finalists are now heading to Miami. There too, the top seeders will enjoy a walk-through in round one - so both Federer and Thiem will not enter the competition before the weekend.