Dominic Thiem says he sees this season as his ‘final chance’ to climb the rankings to a position where he wants to be.
The Austrian claimed the biggest title of his career at the 2021 US Open where he beat Alexander Zverev in the final. However, the following year he sustained a wrist injury during the summer that sidelined him from the Tour for months. Since then he has struggled to find the consistency in his form that has taken him to a ranking high of No.3 in the world.
Thiem is currently ranked 90th in the ATP standings and has been outside the top 50 since April 2022. He started this season by losing in the first round of the Brisbane International to Rafael Nadal after coming through two rounds of qualifying. Then at the Australian Open, he lost his opening match to Felix Auger-Aliassime in five sets.
“I see this as my last chance. If I make it, it can happen quickly,” Thiem told newspaper Der Standard on Tuesday.
“I’ve been back for two years now since the injury, and I finished 2022 on 100 or so and last year on 98. If I finish the year on 100 again, you have to think about whether it’s still worth it.
“I’ve been in rankings for two years now that I don’t want to be in. Of course that weighs on me … I’ve been chasing the feeling of really being able to play tennis in a match again for a long time. And the way I expect myself to.”
Thiem has also made changes to his coaching team after parting ways with Benjamin Ebrahimzadeh. He has yet to announce who will be replacing him.
Like Thiem, this season is likely to be significant for Andy Murray and his future. The former world No.1 and three-time Grand Slam winner is currently going through a rough period on the Tour with a series of disappointing losses. He is currently 0-3 this year with first round losses to Grigor Dimitrov (Brisbane), Tomás Martín Etcheverry (Australian Open) and Benoit Paire (Open Sud de France).
Earlier this week, a BBC journalist wrote an article asking when Murray should retire from the sport. in one section he wrote ‘at what point does bravely soldiering on start to damage his legacy?’ Something that prompted the Brit to hit back on social media.
“Tarnishing my legacy? Do me a favour,” Murray wrote in reply on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“I’m in a terrible moment right now, I’ll give you that.
“Most people would quit and give up in my situation right now. But I’m not most people and my mind works differently.
“I won’t quit. I will keep fighting and working to produce the performances I know I’m capable of.”
There has been various speculation about when the 36-year-old might retire from the sport but at the moment he intends to keep fighting on the Tour. Since the start of the US Open, he has lost nine out of 13 matches played and the last time he achieved back-to-back wins was at the Canadian Open in August.
Thiem and Murray have won 63 ATP titles between them with Murray winning 46 of those.
