Dominic Thiem showed no rustiness from his seven-week break from the Tour as he opened his Madrid Open campaign with a typically dominant win over American Marcos Giron on Tuesday. However, it is his next game against 24th-ranked Australian Alex De Minaur that will pose a far greater challenge and be a real test of where his game is at vis-à-vis the top stars in contemporary men’s tennis post his return from the hiatus.

The current World No.4 conceded that he was anxious to make a strong start to the tournament but was unsure how his body would hold in his tournament opener.

While the 6-1, 6-3 came as a glowing affirmation that he is playing close to his best, if not at his best, De Minaur, with his remarkable defense and court coverage, will put him through the proverbial meat grinder and test his clay court game much more than the unheralded American did.

Dominic Thiem faces a sterner test against Alex De Minaur

Having played the 22-year-old Australian before, Thiem would know exactly what to expect from De Minaur – longer rallies and a good bit of fetching from far off the baseline coupled with smart net-play.

Thiem knows that he will have to move through the gears as he goes deeper in the tournament, running into tougher opponents.

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Tough as the De Minaur clash will be, the Austrian will take a good bit of confidence and belief from his earlier performances against him. 

Thiem holds a 3-0 head-to-head lead over Alex De Minaur

The reigning US Open champion currently holds a 3-0 head-to-head lead over De Minaur, which seems to indicate that he has had a measure of the Australian. However, previous results bear little or no indication of how two players are going to turn up on a particular matchday.

What’s more, the young Aussie has hit decent form in the tournament and will go into the pre-quarters clash on the back of two impressive wins.

Their only previous meeting on clay came in a Davis Cup World Group tie in 2018, and Thiem was stretched to four sets in that encounter.

Though his third-round clash against Lloyd Harris was decided via a walkover after the South African pulled out with an injury, Thiem had won the first set and was leading 3-0 in the second when the match was forfeited.

“Had Been Completely Away”: Dominic Thiem Apprehensive Regarding His Performance at Mutua Madrid Open 2021

Hence, it’s safe to say that Thiem will meet his match in De Minaur and it should make for an absorbing battle for a place in the quarter-finals on Thursday.