Dominic Thiem Snaps Losing Streak Against Anderson To Reach Madrid Final - UBITENNIS
Connect with us

ATP

Dominic Thiem Snaps Losing Streak Against Anderson To Reach Madrid Final

The 24-year-old eased to his second consecutive final at the Caja Magica.

Published

on

 

MADRID: On his seventh attempt Dominic Thiem has got the better of Kevin Anderson to reach the final of the Madrid Open.

The fifth seed, who knocked out Rafael Nadal on Friday, dismissed the South African 6-4, 6-2, in just 85 minutes. Despite previously never beating his rival, this was the first time they have clashed on the clay with Thiem wearing Anderson down as the match progressed. Hitting 18 winners to eight unforced errors. The encounter saw Thiem take advantage of Anderson’s hot and cold performance, where he was making mistakes on relatively straightforward shots.

“I was keeping my level up from yesterday, so that was a great thing. The way I started was also well. Even though I played really different, I was returning very far back today.” Said Thiem.
“Almost everything worked out. To beat him 4 and 2, it’s a very good result.”

A lengthy Anderson service game kicked-off the match with the 31-year-old struggling to find consistency in his shot-making. Enabling a relentless Thiem to capitalize and break for the 1-0 lead, benefiting from an error from his rival on his third break point. That sole break was pivotal to the outcome of the set as the world No.8 failed to find a way to fight back, despite a golden opportunity at 4-5. As Thiem served for the set, his first serve evaded him as he went behind 0-40. Still, it wasn’t enough to deny him as he battled back to deuce before sealing the 6-4 lead with the help of a forehand cross-court winner.

A US Open finalist last year, Anderson illustrated glimmers of his best tennis with the drop-shot and his strong serve being his best tactics. The issue was that it was nowhere consistent enough to trouble Thiem, who continued to apply pressure throughout the second set. Taking advantage of a double fault from his rival to extend his lead to a set and a break.

Strolling towards the finish line, Thiem continued to dictate the points and push his opponent around the court. Prompting a lacklustre Anderson to shake his head and look towards his camp in the crowd. After 85 minutes of play, Thiem booked his place in the final with a serve out wide that triggered another error from Anderson. His 27th of the match.

“I thought that I was pretty far away (from winning a Masters title) before this week started. Now I’m in the final again, which is amazing for me.” Thiem reflected about his Madrid run. “It would be definitely nice if I win the title tomorrow.” 

The run in Madrid comes after what has been a roller-coaster past few months for the Austrian. During March, he was forced to miss the Miami Open due to an ankle injury. Leading into this week, Thiem has not gone beyond the quarter-final stage at his past five tournaments.

“There was a little bit of a lack of confidence in Monte-Carlo and Barcelona. Even though I beat Novak, which was a huge result.” He admits.
“I had a little time out before Monte-Carlo because of the ankle injury from Indian Wells. Took me a while until I was moving my best again, until I was playing my best again. I think the level of my game has increased, especially in this week.”

Thiem will now play in his second Masters 1000 final after Madrid last year. Awaiting him will be either Alexander Zverev or Denis Shapovalov. He has a winning head-to-head record against both of those players.

ATP

Alexander Zverev Deserves More Respect According To Boris Becker

According to Boris Becker, Alexander Zverev deserves more respect from tennis journalists.

Published

on

Alexander Zverev (@WeAreTennis - Twitter)

Boris Becker has claimed that Alexander Zverev deserves more respect despite Zverev failing to live up to his potential at Grand Slams.

 

Zverev has only reached one Grand Slam final in his career despite being a regular inside the world’s top ten as well as performing at regular ATP events.

This season Zverev played a limited schedule after recovering from an ankle injury but still managed to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals.

However most critics have been loud when judging Zverev’s career as it was looking likely that he would be a regular Grand Slam champion.

The German has failed to live up to expectations but former Grand Slam champion Boris Becker believes Zverev deserves more respect.

Speaking to Eurosport Becker also said that Zverev’s father being the coach is a more than successful approach when it comes to the former US Open finalist’s career, “In my opinion, he doesn’t get enough respect from the tennis experts internationally,” Becker explained.

“They’re all talking about the young three or four, but don’t give Zverev, Medvedev or Rublev enough respect. He’s playing with his fist in his pocket a little bit, wants everyone show that he is not a thing of the past, but that his best time is yet to come.

“Surely his father knows best what is good for his son, but if you look into the box at the competition, you can also see changes.”

Becker has followed Zverev for most of his career so knows that the best is yet to come from the German.

Alexander Zverev will look to prove himself next season when he starts his 2024 season when he represents Germany at the United Cup.

Continue Reading

ATP

Juan Carlos Ferrero Analyses Key Areas For Carlos Alcaraz’s Development

Juan Carlos Ferrero has outlined the next steps in Carlos Alcaraz’s development.

Published

on

(@tennisnewsbrazil - Twitter)

Carlos Alcaraz’s coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero has analysed the key areas for the Spaniard’s development heading into the 2024 season.

 

The former world number one’s season has come to an end after a successful year which saw him win the Wimbledon title as well as winning two Masters 1000 titles.

Alcaraz capped off an incredible season by reaching the semi-finals at the Nitto ATP Finals, where he lost to Novak Djokovic.

However there is a long way for the Spaniard to go if he wants to consistently go toe-to-toe with Novak Djokovic.

Speaking to Marca Alcaraz’s coach Juan Carlos Ferrero spoke about the Spaniard’s development and said that Alcaraz is too emotional, “Be more regular in games, not open doors. Sometimes there are mistakes and it is something that we have to improve a lot,” Ferrero commented.

“Although it is true that he opens doors, he always competes well and at the highest level. He knows it, the other day he already said that Novak doesn’t give you one. He has to improve his decision making and he will achieve that with experience. Carlos is very emotional and that sometimes helps him and other times not so much.”

It’s clear Alcaraz’s high-quality is there but to consistently do it against Djokovic is another task altogether as the Spaniard looks to go from strength-to strength next season.

One area that is clearly a priority for Alcaraz is physical conditioning especially considering what happened against Djokovic at Roland Garros earlier in the season.

Ferrero said that will be a clear focus heading into 2024 but couldn’t guarantee that Alcaraz will play a tournament before the Australian Open, “Because of the year and the fatigue he has been in, what he needs is rest and disconnecting for 8-10 days with his friends,” Ferrero stated.

“From there, the thinking must go back to working really hard, strong and well to start very strongly in Australia. One can never be sure of that. Sometimes you play a tournament and it doesn’t go well, you left home too early. There are many ways of thinking.

“This year we haven’t played Australia and he finishes number two. That means there is no urgency to play a tournament early. Carlos is a player who enters competition quickly, you don’t usually see him without rhythm.

“Although it is true that he becomes more dangerous from the round of 16, from the quarter-finals. I am confident that the two exhibition matches and the training sessions will help us play a good tournament.”

Alcaraz will be looking to play the Australian Open which starts on the 15th of January after the Spaniard missed last year’s tournament due to a leg injury.

Continue Reading

ATP

Australian Open Chief Confident Nadal Will Play But Kyrgios’ Participation Uncertain

Published

on

Nadal RG 2022 by Night (foto @RolandGarros)

The tournament director of the Australian Open says he is ‘certain’ that Rafael Nadal will play at the Grand Slam even though the Spaniard has yet to outline his comeback plans. 

 

Craig Tiley told reporters in Melbourne on Thursday he hopes to receive some clarity over Nadal’s intentions in the next couple of weeks but is confident he will play. However, the tennis official had previously claimed in October that the former world No.1 had already committed to play in the event before his team denied that statement.  

Nadal, who has won 22 Grand Slam titles, hasn’t played a Tour match since his second round defeat at the Australian Open in January due to a hip injury. He was originally expecting to take an eight-week break but the recovery didn’t go to plan and he ended up having surgery. In May he confirmed that he will take an extended break from the sport to heal his body and admitted that retirement next year is a possibility.

“Rafa has been training, I follow him closely, probably every day because he’s a massive drawcard for us,” the Reuters News Agency quoted Tiley as saying. 
“He wants to play, he’s obviously planning on playing. It all depends on how he pulls up.
“Hopefully in the next week or the next two weeks, we get some specific confirmation of that. I’m certain Rafa will be here because he’s not going to want to miss the opportunity to repeat what he did a couple of years ago.”

Earlier this month Nadal confirmed that he intends to return to the Tour but admits that he will continue to experience a degree of pain. Although he has yet to give any information about which tournament he will begin his comeback at. The 2024 season begins during the first week of January.

“I’m well, training, and happy. I’m at a good stage of my life,” atptour.com quoted Nadal as telling reporters in Barcelona.
“Until now I didn’t know if I would play tennis again someday, and now I genuinely believe I will. I’m still not ready to say when, but I’m able to train increasingly longer, and the progress is good.’

Will Kyrgios play?

Another player Tiley is eager to welcome back is home player and former Wimbledon Finalist Nick Kyrgios who has only played one Tour-level match this season due to injury. He underwent knee surgery in January and then tore a ligament in his wrist during the summer. As a result, the Australian currently doesn’t have an ATP ranking due to his inactivity. 

“We have spoken to Nick, and he obviously wants to do the best he possibly can to give him the best chance to play in January,” Tiley said of Kyrgios.
“Whether he’s playing, whether he’s doing something else, Nick will be here in January and to get him to play will be great. But we’ve got to take it as it comes and he’s got to make sure he takes care of his health …” 

Kyrgios recently worked as an analyst for the Tennis Channel during this year’s ATP Finals in Turin and gave a brief update on his ongoing recovery during a segment. 

“After last year, I had such a great year, and I’m so hungry to get back out there,” the 2022 Wimbledon finalist commented.
“So I’m doing everything I can to get back out there. Obviously, you know how injuries are every day, just doing the rehab, doing the gym work.”

The Australian Open will begin on Sunday 14th January. Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka are the defending champions. 

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Trending