Pundit shares why Dominic Thiem may upset Roger Federer
Speaking on Sky Sport the former world No. 25 Filippo Volandri commented on the upcoming Indian Wells final between Roger Federer and Dominic Thiem. The Italian said the Austrian can be very competitive against the Swiss. "It's dry, there is no humidity, the the ball bounces a lot, and Thiem makes it bounce so much on the backhand side but mostly on serve. Against Milos Raonic, he served like Milos usually does, he almost hit 90 percent first serve in and his kick serve bounced a lot."
On Thiem's progresses, Volandri added: "Last year Thiem struggled, he did also this year but week by week he improved and he played a great tennis. He was also lucky because Gael Monfils withdrew from their quarter-final match. I thought the Frenchman would reach the final. But against Raonic, Thiem played a really good match, he knows how you can do it because he beat Federer on clay and also on grass, which makes you think a little bit. So for me the match will be balanced."
On Thiem's tactics against Federer, Volandri concluded: "Thiem will have to hit a lot of first serves in, and hit great passings. He was perfectly balanced against Raonic, hitting being far away from the baseline as well. Federer will not make Thiem hit too much from the baseline. We will see a lot of chip and charge, with Roger hitting inside the baseline and he will be very fast."
Federer is coming into the final being fresh as Rafael Nadal withdrew from their semifinal clash due to a knee injury.
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2CmyrLm
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