MADRID: Dominic Thiem sees a silver lining to his latest loss at the Madrid Open after being on the verge of his maiden Masters title.
The Austrian muscled his way past world No.1 Rafael Nadal and Kevin Anderson on route to Sunday’s final at the Caja Magica. He was prevented from clinching the trophy by a dominant Alexander Zverev, who broke him twice on route to winning the tournament. It was a bittersweet ending for Thiem, who lead Zverev 4-1 in their head-to-head prior to this week.
“It was I think an average match from both of us. I just couldn’t maintain my level from the match against Rafa and the match yesterday against Anderson. That was the problem today.” Said Thiem.
“In general, I was playing not good enough. He was not serving better than Anderson yesterday. I had many returns on the racquet, but just didn’t make them, or played it too easy back for him.”
Despite the loss, the 24-year-old is sticking to the positives of his run. Joking afterwards that his first break in the match was his ‘first step into misery.’ Looking at the wider picture, Thiem has reached the final of a Masters event for only the second time in his career. The run has seen him score only his second-ever win over a world No.1.
The resurgence of the Austrian follows what has been a testing past couple of months. During the American hardcourt swing in March, he withdrew from the Miami Open due to an ankle injury. Returning to action in Monte Carlo, he only managed to win two games during his hammering by Nadal in the quarter-finals. Making his Madrid revenge victory even sweeter for him.
“I got my self-confidence fully back, even though I lost today. It was still a good week. I just played bad today, that’s it. There is no reason to be worried.” He evaluated.
“I have the feeling that I have, on clay, a lot of matches in my own hands.”
Thiem will be seeded sixth in the upcoming Italian Open in Rome. Granted a bye in the first round, he will start his campaign against either Fabio Fognini or Gael Monfils.
