ATP: Dominic Thiem – Focus on track number nine

We start for Dominic Thiem on the small sand court tour in South America. In Buenios Aires, Austria’s number one competes as a tournament favourite.

The times have changed for Dominic Thiem – and in the power relations in men’s tennis as well. In 2016, when Austria’s number one won the tournament in Buenos Aires after defeating Rafael Nadal in the final round and Nicolas Almagro in the final, Thiems’ first-round opponent was Pablo Carreno Busta. The Spaniard has worked his way up the world rankings since then, and will start as number two at the ATP World Tour 250 event, which starts on Monday after Marin Cilic’s cancellation. Behind Thiem.

His last tournament match on ashes dates from June 2017 – at that time the now 24-year-old was defeated by Rafael Nadal in three sets in the semi-final of the French Open at Court Philippe Chatrier. Since then, Thiem has only shown himself on sand in the Davis Cup, last autumn in Wels against Romania, a week ago in St. Gallen. Pölten versus Belarus. Basically, Dominic Thiem played (and won) four preliminary matches, but the class difference against the opponents was too clear. This time, however, it’s on to ashes, the Laver Cup had been waiting for last September.

The last days before leaving for South America Thiem spent the last days in Südstadt with solo units of coach Günter Bresnik. The shape of the current number six in the world is good, for the fine-tuning the head coach has served the balls to his protégé partially also from the basket. Accompanying the tournaments in Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro and Acapulco is Galo Blanco, the Spaniard enjoys the unrestricted trust of Thiem and Bresnik. The latter will only join the team in Miami.

Thiem enjoys a walk-through at the start in Buenos Aires, after which there will probably be a reunion with Horacio Zeballos. Against the Argentinean, the Lichtenwörther celebrated a sovereign success at the so far only meeting in Roland Garros 2017. Fernando Verdasco could then wait, according to the seed list in the quarter-finals Fabio Fognini. Thiem has always been the favourite in these games, a role with which he has long been familiar since moving into the top ten.

Training observers in Südstadt report a brilliant form, especially on the backhand, which is always a sign of pronounced self-confidence at Dominic Thiem. Confidence in one’s own strength comes of course with the victories, but a tournament win was almost a year ago – in Rio 2017 Pablo Carreno Busta was the last player to congratulate Thiem. To the eighth and so far last championship of the Lower Austrian.

Thiem explained to the APA before leaving for Argentina that it was time for a bigger triumph. So for a tournament week after which you don’t leave with a defeat. In the doubles, Dominic Thiem in Buenos Aires will also be able to rely on the support of the audience: he will compete with local hero Diego Schwartzman. In turn, he will meet Andreas Haider-Maurer in round one of the individual competition.

Here the single panel in Buenos Aires