Dominic Thiem Reaches Third Consecutive French Open Quarter-Final - UBITENNIS

Dominic Thiem Reaches Third Consecutive French Open Quarter-Final

The world No.8 overcame a late resurgence from Kei Nishikori to book his place in the last eight.

By Adam Addicott
4 Min Read
Dominic Thiem (zimbio.com)

Dominic Thiem’s love affair with Roland Garros continued on Sunday following an impressive 6-2, 6-0, 5-7, 6-4, win over Kei Nishikori.

The seventh seed had never won a set against his Japanese opponent before today. Losing both of their previous encounters. There was no chance of history repeating itself at Roland Garros thanks to what was a clinical start to the match by the Austrian. In total, Thiem hit 41 winners to 33 unforced errors and only faced one break point in the match.

“The first two sets were amazing. I think he (Nishikori) was below his (usual) level.” Thiem said during his on-court interview.
“He then raised his level and it became a 50/50 match. My advantage was that I had already won two sets, but still at the end it got very close.”

Becoming only the fourth player to ever bagel Nishikori in a grand slam tournament, the defensive skills of the 24-year-old delighted the crowd on Court Philippe Chatrier.  During the first two sets, a flawless Thiem dropped just four points behind his serve as he dominated play. It wasn’t until the third where he got the test that many expected to occur.

Two-time quarter-finalist Nishikori increased his level on the court to try and tame his opponent.  The one-sided encounter was no more as the excitement amongst the crowd increased. Thiem remained dominant on serve, but struggled to find a way to break Nishikori to seal the match. Eventually succumbing to Nishikori at the end of the third set to revive his hopes.

Despite the blip, the 24-year-old managed to restore order. A break midway through the fourth frame was enough of a margin to see him get the win. After failing to convert his first match point, he triumphed with his second after a Nishikori forehand drifted beyond the baseline in was was a tense ending.

“I was a little bit nervous at the end because it is something special to serve for a place in the quarter-finals of the French Open.” Thiem admitted.

In the last eight Thiem will take on Alexander Zverev, who came through his fourth round match in five sets. He will be bidding to reach the last four at Roland Garros for the third consecutive year. Hoping that the conditions will be the same as today.

“I love these conditions. I love the balls and the clay here (at Roland Garros).” He explained. “It was the first time I played on Philippe Chatrier against somebody other than Rafa (Nadal). So I could enjoy the court a bit more and it was a great match.”

In their head-to-head, Thiem trails Zverev 2-4. It will be their second meeting in a grand slam after Thiem won their French Open meeting in 2016.

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