Dominic Thiem and Co. will be represented in the Davis Cup World Group next year. Austria’s number one defeated Alex de Minaur in the first singles match in Graz on Sunday and scored the decisive third point for the hosts.
By Jens Huiber from Graz
Sunday mornings are no easy matter at the Davis Cup: the magic of the beginning of Friday is a bit gone, the cosy double afternoon is long gone – and in the special case of Graz the “Aufsteirern”, a folk festival that has taken over the city centre from ten o’clock in the morning.
Dominic Thiem, on the other hand, is from Lower Austria, Styria is the Austrian number one, if at all, only in private life. What Thiem cultivates: a portfolio of world-class hits. With whom the Austrian number one Alex de Minaur, after a great fight at the end, put in her place and gave the red-white-red selection a 6:4, 6:2, 3:6 and 6:4 place in the Davis Cup World Group 2019 after a playing time of 2:47 hours.
“No changes”, the press officer of the Austrian Tennis Federation announced at exactly 10:01 a.m. Lleyton Hewitt’s decision to bet on de Minaur – and not on John Millman, who had beaten Roger Federer at the US Open. 19-year-old de Minaur had almost beaten Alexander Zverev at the beginning of the year. At home in Brisbane, though. And on hard court.
The sand of Graz, on the other hand, had been tailored to Dominic Thiem’s body. Even though the man from Lichtenwörth was also among the last eight at the US Open. And two points away from entering the semifinal.
Thiem worked on de Minaur with massive spin balls, the 19-year-old Australian pointed to the left and right, but as against Dennis Novak de Minaur seldom managed to free himself from the defensive position. Although the underdog managed an early break to 3-1, Thiem equalised immediately and took control of the match towards the end of the first set.
The second round was a clear matter for the hosts right from the start, de Minaur only wrote in the fifth game. After 83 minutes of play Thiem had won the set 6:2. Coach Günter Bresnik, who only travelled to Graz for Sunday, was satisfied in the ORF interview.
Thiem de Minaur had left six games in the only meeting until Sunday, 2017 at the US Open, where the best-of-five format is also known. That Thiem briefly lost concentration in the third act, had to give up his serve for 0:2 came as a surprise for all participants, including the Australians. De Minaur took advantage of the weak phase and served without great problems to 6:3.
In set four, it was again the younger player who came out with a break. Twice, Thiem managed to equalize twice. But then Thiem took a 5-4 lead – and used his first match point for the Austrian team’s overall victory. “The fourth set was really on the edge,” Thiem explained after the match. Especially since de Minaur from the baseline simply wouldn’t have made any more mistakes.
Next year, Austria will play for a place in the final tournament, which is expected to take place in Madrid or Lille, in early February. A home game is possible, betting in round one is safe. One thing will change in any case: Starting in 2019, three winning sets will no longer be played. Not an advantage for players with the extraordinary fitness of a Dominic Thiem.
Incidentally, Sunday mornings will no longer be held next year.