French Open: Dominic Thiem's draw in the check - fully challenged from the start
After the US Open is before the French Open: We took a closer look at Dominic Thiem's path to a possible Grand Slam double.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: Sep 24, 2020, 09:44 pm
1st round: Marin Cilic
Dominic Thiem could hardly have gotten a more unpleasant start in Paris. With Marin Cilic, the Austrian is waiting for the 2014 US Open winner and a player who can be dangerous to any of his opponents in top form. The Croatian has been following this top form for some time now, but less than a month ago Thiem felt what Cilic is still capable of: At the US Open, the Lichtenwörther was lucky after two outstanding sets at the beginning, not having to go through the fifth round. The world number 39 feels on hard court. according to his own statements, although he is more comfortable than on sand, Cilic has already reached the quarter-finals twice at the French Open. Thiem, who has won all three previous duels against the 31-year-old, must therefore be fully there from the start.
2nd round: Reilly Opelka / qualifier
Reilly Opelka, like Marin Cilic, is one of those actors that every player would like to avoid at the beginning of a Grand Slam tournament. With his brute serve and the powerful forehand, the 23-year-old American dominates many rallies, but these two weapons lose some of their penetration on sand. But be careful: In the only duel between Thiem and Opelka so far, the world number 36 brought. the Austrians in Madrid, where they have been playing on ashes since 2009, on the verge of defeat.
Qualifiers in the early rounds of a major tournament are always dangerous, as they start the main competition with self-confidence after three wins in the preliminary round. In the meantime, Dominic Thiem should be so playfully superior to these that this small advantage shouldn't play too big a role.
3rd round: Casper Ruud
Evidently all bad things come in threes. Thiem could also expect an extremely unpleasant opponent in the third round. Casper Ruud caused a sensation last week with his semi-final entry in Rome and is currently teaching his opponents fear in Hamburg. Sand is the absolute favorite surface of the Norwegian, who tries to dominate the rallies, especially with his very topspin-heavy forehand. Should this clash happen, it would be the first between Thiem and Ruud.
4th round: Felix Auger-Aliassime / Stan Wawrinka
Felix Auger-Aliassime is without a doubt one of the greatest talents on the ATP tour! The only 20-year-old is already at number 21 in the world rankings and has shown more than just good approaches in the past season. At this year's US Open, FAA played for the first time in a Grand Slam round of 16, but in this the Canadian had no chance in the only match against Thiem so far. In addition, sand is not the youngster's favorite surface - this week Felix Auger-Aliassime clearly had to admit defeat to Alexander Bublik in the second round in Hamburg.
There is a big question mark behind Stan Wawrinka's form before the start of the French Open. The Swiss lost to Lorenzo Musettti in the first round of the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome and even received the maximum penalty in the first set. Still, Wawrinka is an extremely unpleasant opponent when in good shape. The 35-year-old also feels right at home in Roland Garros - in 2015 Wawrinka, who this year meets Andy Murray in the first round, even triumphed in Paris! In the head to head with Thiem, "Stan the man" is 3-1 ahead.
Quarterfinals: Gael Monfils / Diego Schwartzman
Dominic Thiem's record against Gael Monfils is impressive: The Lichtenwörther leads head-to-head 6-0, the most recent win dates from January 2020. At the Australian Open, the 27-year-old gave the fan favorite no chance at all. The French Open round of 16 was similarly clear just over a year ago. The Frenchman is one of Thiem's absolute favorite opponents and is also in a minor crisis - Thiem would therefore probably not complain about a fourth-final duel against Monfils.
After weaker performances in New York and Kitzbühel, Diego Schwartzman played his way to the final in Rome last week. On the way there, the Argentine even beat clay court king Rafael Nadal - afterwards the 28-year-old spoke of the best match of his career. Against Thiem, who leads 6-2 in a direct comparison, a similar performance should be in demand in a possible quarter-final.
Semi-finals: Rafael Nadal
The ultimate challenge in Roland Garros could already be waiting for Thiem in the semifinals this year. If in the last two years against Rafael Nadal the final stop was in each case, there would be the game of the two best clay court players of recent years in the semifinals in 2020. Although Thiem was able to win five of the 14 games against the Spaniard, the world number three in Roland Garros is still missing a win against the twelve-time French Open champion. In the previous four meetings on the Bois de Boulogne, Thiem only won one set against Nadal.
Final: Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic should have breathed aloud when looking at the draw: Dominic Thiem landed in the lower half and could therefore only be the opponent of the world number one in the final. Last year, the 17-time Grand Slam winner was defeated by Thiem in a five-sentence battle, and the Austrian also won against Djokovic in Paris in 2017. A year earlier, the 33-year-old had clearly prevailed in three sentences. Overall, the Serb leads 7: 4 in a direct comparison, a possible endgame between the two would also bring additional explosiveness. Finally, Thiem still has an invoice from the Australian Open 2020 final with Djokovic.