Former US Open champion Dominic Thiem has delayed his return to competitive tennis after suffering a ‘minor injury’ during a practice session.
The 27-year-old was set to kick-off his season this week at the Cordoba Open in Argentina where he would have been the second seed. However, the Austrian has suffered a right finger injury after straining a ligament. In a statement Thiem also acknowledged that he was ‘lacking practice’ in the lead up to his return.
“In the last days, I suffered a minor injury between my knuckles, a little strain of my ligament. The positive thing is the wrist is perfectly fine, but I’m suffering pain in my hand and also lacking practice, so I have to pull out,” Thiem said. “I’m very sad, but I’m going to come back once I’m 100 per cent fit, and thank you so much for the great and warm welcome I had here in Cordoba.”
According to journalist Nikolas Fink, Thiem said during an online press conference on Monday that his new injury will take between two days and two weeks to fully heal. Raising questions over his participation at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires which will begin next Monday. He said that it is possible that he will not be ‘fully competitive’ until Indian Wells which will take place in March.
Thiem hasn’t played on the Tour since last June after injuring his wrist whilst playing at the Mallorca Open. A medical examination later revealed that he suffered a detachment of the posterior sheath of the ulnar side of the right wrist. Thiem had hoped to stage a return to the Tour earlier than now but suffered some setbacks during his rehabilitation process.
The former world No.3 has won 17 Tour titles during his career, including the 2020 US Open. He has also won more than $28.8M in prize money.
