Dominic Thiem’s opening defeat against Kevin Anderson at the ATP Finals in London was not unexpected. The Austrian number one has nevertheless found some positive things.
By Jens Huiber from London
If you lose your first match at the ATP Finals, you have carried yourself a pretty deep pit. Or all chances to advance to the Saturday semi-final. Dominic Thiem, after his opening defeat against Kevin Anderson, chose approach number two, the most beautiful thing about the season finale tournament is that it is not yet over after a defeat.
The first set against the South African, who has now gone 7-2 in the internal balance with Thiem after two defeats in the current season, was one to forget. With the exception of his very first service game, the Lower Austrian was constantly on the defensive, Anderson did not give away any points either, quickly the sponge over it.
The soundscape in the O2 Arena is probably unique on the ATP tour, with an estimated 20,000 people watching the tennis pros at work. Break, set and match balls are accompanied by acoustic effects, Thiem of course doesn’t miss a thing, he doesn’t feel further disturbed by the players. Basically not by the fact that Kevin Anderson reaches for the towel after every, really every point.
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“I can’t do anything about it anyway,” Thiem explained at the press conference about an hour after the end of the game. But what he would like to see is a shot clock at all tournaments. So he knows when the game’s on. Thiem himself is one of the nimblers on the ATP tour, one of the attributes he shares with Alexander Zverev.
On Friday he had sent his best regards to his sport mate Stefanos Tsitsipas in Milan. Ball children are there to supply the ball, not to bring the towel to the players. Tsitsipas had seen things differently, but probably managed quite well with the towel rails in Milan. The royal solution, by the way, as Dominic Thiem expressly emphasized a few days ago in Paris.
Thiem almost had the playful solution for Kevin Anderson in the second movement, the return position has changed, but above all the quality of the same. Chances were there, in contrast to passage one Thiem could fight his way into the opening match at Anderson’s serve. And it was precisely during these phases that he did not manage to win longer rallies.
Very well, then. The last hour of his opening match had given him confidence that he could build on the second act. The evening game between Roger Federer and Kei Nishikori will show against whom. Dominic Thiem will give himself the match, whether live or in the hotel was not explained at the press conference. The difference will be about as big as between Dominic Thiem and Kevin Anderson in the tiebreak of the second movement. Marginal, that is.