French Open: Thiem is firmly in the main draw after Nadal's cancellation
Due to RafaelNadal 's cancellation,Dominic Thiem is firmly in the main draw of the French Open.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit: May 18, 2023, 06:31 pm
As he announced on Thursday, Rafael Nadal will only watch the French Open as a spectator for the first time since 2004. The 36-year-old canceled his participation in the second Grand Slam tournament of the year due to ongoing hip flexor problems. Dominic Thiem, of all people, who is now directly in the main field, benefits from this.
Thiem, who lost to Nadal in both 2018 and 2019 French Open finals, saves himself the trip through qualifying and now has more time to prepare for the tournament at the Bois de Boulogne. The main competition in Roland Garros starts on May 28th.
Last year, Thiem failed in round one at the French Open in three sets against Hugo Dellien. This year, the Austrian comes to Paris in slightly better form, although he recently had to admit defeat to Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the round of 16 at the ATP Challenger tournament in Bordeaux .