ATP Finals: Dominic Thiem – Time for the big hard court coup!

Dominic Thiem is in top form ahead of the upcoming ATP finals and would like to have a say in the awarding of the title at his third participation in London. But what are the chances of Austria’s number one in the tournament of the best eight players of the season?

He can play on sand, Dominic Thiem. This is known among his colleagues and the entire tennis circuit. On the hard court the “Dominator” does not experience much reverence. This could now change in London at the Nitto ATP finals.

Thiem has never performed as well as in the past weeks on the formerly unpopular hard court. The initial spark was probably the US Open quarter finals against the world number one Rafael Nadal, when Thiem played tennis of the highest quality class. The 6:0 in the first set against the Spaniard was the icing on the cake.

The title in St. Petersburg underlined the good form of the Austrian, the semi-final in Paris-Bercy also dispelled the last doubts that Thiem does not have to hide from anyone. An overpowering Karen Khachanov, who was victorious in the end, stopped the 25-year-old, but this didn’t stop Thiem’s position-fixing.

But now the O2 Arena in London will face the best eight players of the season. It is worth noting that the best hard court players are also there, as most tournaments on the ATP tour are held on the fast underground.

Watch the ATP Finals in Austria now and be there live for only € 9,99 with your Sky Ticket until the end of December. Easy to cancel monthly.

Along with Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Co., the name Dominic Thiem will not be high on the list of favourites for the unofficial World Tennis Championship. This could offer Thiem a decisive advantage. In the group stage, number eight in the world will face Roger Federer, Kei Nishikori and Kevin Anderson.

The draw sounds like a bad news at first, but it’s not hopeless. Against Federer, with the exception of Djokovic, every player is an outsider, but in the duel with Nishikori and Anderson, Thiem is on a par. The Japanese and the South African are also in great shape – but they do not have a decisive advantage over Thiem.

Thiem coach Günter Bresnik sees this as well, as he explained in an interview with tennisnet.com: “Nishikori and Anderson are opponents where I can say Dominic can win. But also lose. I can flip a coin there. What is important is how comfortable the players feel with the conditions there. There’s so many ifs there. The only ones who will really make a strong impression there will be Federer and Djokovic.”

In his previous appearances, Thiem failed twice in the group phase. Lichtenwörther completed six matches in London in 2016 and 2017 and celebrated two victories. However, the 25-year-old did not have much to gain.

This is now to be changed. With more experience and improved play Thiem travels to his third finals tournament. According to Bresnik, training with Djokovic and buddy Alexander Zverev is already planned to get in the mood. The framework conditions have therefore been created. The conditions for the big coup on the hitherto unpopular hard court.

Watch the ATP Finals in Germany now and be there live for only € 9.99 with your Sky Ticket until the end of December. Easy to cancel monthly.