Thiem, Coric out early, Cilic injured - what does that mean for the Davis Cup?
Have the conditions for the Davis Cup meeting between Austria and Croatia in Rijeka at the beginning of February changed due to the early departure of top players Dominic Thiem and Borna Coric ?
by Jens Huiber
last edit: Jan 18, 2023, 12:36 pm
Not only Dominic Thiem said goodbye to the Australian Open 2023 after just one appearance. For Borna Coric, too, the first major of the year only lasted three sets, all of which he lost 3:6 against Jiri Lehecka. Marin Cilic and Dennis Novak didn't even come to Melbourne. One, Cilic, because of a knee injury suffered in Pune, the other, Novak, because he wanted to save himself the qualifying tournament.
Why might this be important? Because these four players will probably play the singles in the first round game of the Davis Cup in Rijeka in early February. Unless there are serious injuries in between. Or Austria's captain Jürgen Melzer prefers Jurij Rodionov to Dennis Novak, who is always very strong in international matches.
Thiem with a positive record against Coric and Cilic
The quite clear favorite position, which was rightly given to the Croatians due to the home advantage and the discrepancy in the current world ranking positions, reads a little differently a few weeks later. Neither Thiem nor Coric were able to convince (the Croatian collected at least two victories in the United Cup), this is most likely to be attested to Novak, who after all won a Challenger tournament in Thailand. Not to forget, of course: with Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, Croatia can count on a doubles team that has been among the best in the world for years.
On paper, the hosts still have the edge. Especially since it is not known to what extent the problems in the rib area, from which Dominic Thiem suffered compared to Andrey Rublev, will slow down the Austrian number one. Because a possible red-white-red advancement will depend very much on Thiem's performance. The 29-year-old has a 3-2 record against Borna Coric, the last three games went over three sets. Thiem leads 4-1 against Marin Cilic. But had to admit defeat at the last meeting in Tel Aviv in autumn 2022.
In any case, one thing is clear: time is ticking. To get well again. And to build a stable form.