“Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal Might Be Pissed at Me” – Dominic Thiem on His Loss to Novak Djokovic at Australian Open 2020

Published 02/04/2020, 5:47 PM EST

The most of ‘Fedfans’ and ‘Rafans’ globally were rooting for Dominic Thiem during the Australian Open 2020 finals. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s fan base did not want Novak Djokovic to come closer to the Grand Slam count of the two glass towers of tennis. And as a consequence, on the championship Sunday they were cheering for Djokovic’s opponent.

Deep inside, even Thiem feels that Roger and Rafa wanted to him at the Melbourne finals. With Thiem’s victory, the Serb Djokovic would have stayed on number 16, and maintained the major count difference with his other two rivals.

The Austrian shared that his defeat must have annoyed Federer and Nadal. Djokovic is now three and two Slams away from equaling the Grand Slam records of Roger and Rafa respectively. “Federer and Nadal might be pissed at me because Djokovic came closer to the Grand Slam record.” Dominic Thiem said after arriving in Vienna, Austria from Melbourne.

Article continues below this ad

“I can play on a very high level” – Dominic Thiem

In Melbourne, before the championship Sunday, he spent more than 18 hours on the court, over the span of two weeks. He was fatigued once he boarded for the finals.

Article continues below this ad

“Beating Rafa in over four hours, then two days later going back out against Sascha in an unbelievably intense and close match. Then again two days later going out against Novak, who has won the most titles there. And again playing on a very high level,” Thiem told reporters after losing to Djokovic.

Nevertheless, he feels that he can still play challenging tennis and dethrone the ‘Big Three’ shortly. World Number four Thiem believes that he is close to making his Grand Slam breakthrough. He is confident that he can definitely achieve that niche.

“I’m really aware and sure now that I can play on a very high level for a full Grand Slam. I didn’t have any drops. That doesn’t make me proud but it makes me very confident for the next big tournaments which are coming up,” Thiem said.

Article continues below this ad

“I Can Play At a Very High Level” Dominic Thiem Positive Despite Loss At Australian Open Finals

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Mahalakshmi Murali joined EssentiallySports in 2018 as a tennis author and has gone on to pen more than 1800 engaging articles, probing into various aspects of the sport and its illustrious players. With her expertise on the sport, Mahalakshmi has interviewed stalwarts from the sport such as Serena WIlliams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou and Kevin Anderson’s physio, Carlos Costa. Equipped with her vast experience and a keen understanding of the sport, Mahalakshmi now co-heads the tennis department.

“Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal Might Be Pissed at Me” – Dominic Thiem on His Loss to Novak Djokovic at Australian Open 2020

“I can play on a very high level” – Dominic Thiem

Trending

Roger Federer Breaks Partnership With Billion Dollar Worth Italian Brand Days After Coco Gauff’s Stunning Commercial Appearance

What Does Danielle Collins’ Boyfriend Do? Everything to Know about Her Lowkey Dating History

Tennis News: Rafael Nadal Confirms Retirement ; Doping-Banned Mikael Ymer Announces Comeback; Stefanos Tsitsipas Dubbed as Hypocrite

Barcelona Open 2024: Cameron Norrie vs Tomas Martin Etcheverry; Preview, Head-to-Head, Prediction

Stuttgart Open 2024: Aryna Sabalenka vs Markéta Vondroušová; Preview, Head-to-Head, Prediction