“Have To Live With That”: Dominic Thiem Displeased With Lack of Events Before Australian Open 2021

The 2020 ATP calendar will miraculously come to a close after the conclusion of the year-end event in London. As a new season dawns, the Australian Open will be the first Grand Slam of the year raising huge anticipations. But Dominic Thiem is a man who’s not particularly happy about competing in Melbourne. 

Thiem is one of the competitors at ATP Finals 2020 who looks to seal the prestigious championship. However, Andrey Rublev put to a halt to his run in their final round-robin match. Following the loss, Thiem was asked about his excitement with regards to the upcoming Slam, and here’s what he said: 

“If…the Australian Open is the first tournament, then it’s going to be similar like the US Open,” mentioned Thiem. “There was Cincinnati, but, well, for me personally, it was not a great warmup tournament as I lost the first round easy there.”

Theim answers comes in light of the fact that players struggled to find form at US Open 2020. Returning after a long layoff made it grueling for the athletes to compete in five-setters. 

Dominic Thiem is skeptical about his chances at Australian Open 2021

Lack of preparation stands out as the significant factor that might distance Thiem and the title in Melbourne. He has every chance of winning it, but if there are no tournaments beforehand, the reach becomes a bit too far for him. 

“In general, I hope that the Australian Open (is) happening, and if it’s happening without any tournament before, well, we have to live with that and try to go there early, prepare as well as possible for the major.”

Dominic Thiem is fine with directly competing at the Australian Open, but his winning chances are slim. He reached the finals in 2020, but the competition will gain more strength in the upcoming edition. 

Though there are several complications and restrictions in place, the players just want to go out and compete in Melbourne. Only three Majors took place in 2020 as Wimbledon couldn’t go on due to the severity of the pandemic. Due to the high unpredictability of events, players want to make use of every chance they get at. 

“But I think right now everybody is hoping that Australian Open are happening and that we can travel to Australia,” Thiem said. 

Dominic Thiem won the 2020 US Open through to add to his impressive trophy cabinet. Furthermore, his historic victory has also instilled confidence in other players that they can dethrone the ‘Big 3’s’ dominance in tennis.