Austrian tennis star Dominic Thiem has delayed his return to tennis due to not being ready in time after what has been a mixed start to the season.
The world No.4 has pulled out of the Monte Carlo Masters which will get underway on April 10th because he is ‘not at 100% yet.’ It is the first time he will not be playing in the tournament since 2013. Last year’s edition wasn’t held due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thiem’s best performance at Monte Carlo was in 2018 when he reached the quarter-finals before losing to Rafael Nadal.
“After Doha and Dubai I needed a break,” the 27-year-old said in a statement published on his website. “I’m not at 100% yet. I’m so sorry, I would have loved to play in Monte Carlo, but it won‘t work out.”
Instead Thiem will be training on clay in his home country under the watchful eye of his coach Nicolas Massu. He hasn’t elaborated on the exact issues he is currently facing or if it is a fitness or physical problem halting his return to the Tour.
“I’m having tough weeks ahead of me, I have a lot of work to do,” he admits.
Earlier this year the US Open champion opened up about a foot issue that has been bothering him in recent months. According to his father Wolfgang it is linked to him sliding on hard courts and is more of an intermittent pain. In his most recent match at the Dubai Tennis Championships last month Thiem said his foot didn’t trouble him at all.
“Everyone has their weak point. But it’s nothing serious, otherwise it would also hurt if he didn’t put any weight on the foot,” Wolfgang told Kleine Zeitung. “Dominic always has problems sliding on hard courts. A callus develops over the years – and if this area is heavily stressed, irritation can arise.”
So far this season Thiem has only won back-to-back matches in one out of four tournaments played. Doing so at the Australian Open where he reached the fourth round before losing to Grigor Dimitrov. Since then he has suffered second round losses in Doha and Dubai. His win-loss record for 2021 currently stands at 5-4.
