Thiem disappointed on Sand

Dominic Thiem must admit defeat to a qualifier in Rio de Janeiro. But sand is actually the Austrian’s favourite surface.

Australian Open finalist Dominic Thiem has suffered a surprising defeat on his beloved clay court. The 26-year-old Austrian was defeated in the quarter-finals of the ATP tournament in Rio de Janeiro by Italian qualifier Gianluca Mager 6-7 (4-7), 5-7. The match was interrupted on Friday evening (local time) due to rain, but Thiem was unable to turn the match around on Saturday.

Thiem had won the tournament in Rio in 2017, ten of his total of 16 titles the number four in the tennis world has collected on clay, twice he only failed in the final of the French Open in Paris. At the moment, Thiem is only 128th, but starting Monday the 25-year-old from Sanremo will be among the top 100 for the first time.