Thiem may be first to win French Open outside the Big Three in decades
Dominic Thiem’s win over Daniil Medvedev at the Barcelona Open was a big one, 6-4, 6-0. The Austrian champion joins only Roger Federer as a second-titlist this year. All the others are singular winners on both the ATP and WTA circuits. The powerful masterclass he displayed—first defeating the ‘king of clay’ Rafael Nadal in the semis, and then bageling the Russian in the final—put him in contention of claiming the French Open this year.
The momentum is in Thiem’s court, with the Austrian having defeated two of the Big Three this year. He earned his first Masters 1000 with a victory over Roger Federer at Indian Wells. He’s now followed up with a win over Nadal in Barcelona, the second year he’s managed the rare feat of defeating the clay legend on the surface Nadal owns. Although Thiem beat Rafa at last year’s Madrid quarterfinals—the next tournament coming up—he was unable to carry over the same confidence into the Roland Garros final, going out in straight sets while the Spaniard collected his 17th slam title.
But this may not be the case this year. With a new coach (Nicolas Massu) and a confidence boost from his first Masters title, the 25-year-old Barcelona champ demonstrated immense composure, self-control, and brilliant execution in the Barcelona final. Dominic Thiem sits just 500 points behind Federer in the ATP rankings at No. 5, and Nadal has already said that he expects the Austrian to become a world No. 1 someday.
Strong players in their mid-twenties have probably had the most insurmountable odds during the era of the Big Four (really, Three)—Nadal, Federer, Novak Djokovic, (and Andy Murray). While a few have come close to reaching tennis zenith—namely, Marin Cilic, Grigor Dimitrov, Juan Martin del Potro, and Alexander Zverev—the big prizes won by each can be counted on one hand.
However, Dominic Thiem has been chomping at the bit for a few years. The Barcelona trophy was his 13th ATP crown. The nerveless athleticism, power-hitting, and quick prowess he displayed are an indication that he is perhaps putting together an aggressive initiative this year. His superiority on clay puts him in a class of a minuscule number of players who could offer a challenge to Nadal on his home turf at the French Open.
"Paris is still pretty far away, I'm happy with my clay form right now, this is actually my biggest clay title -- this one here," said Thiem after his win over Medvedev.
"It makes me happy to have won it, Paris is not really in my head."
Is it possible that there will be a new name on the Coupe des Mousquetaires trophy this year? No one outside the Big Three—but mostly Nadal—have won there for decades. Could Thiem become the first since 2004? This age of legendary players has to end sometime, and Dominic Thiem may be one of the fresh names leading the changing of the guard.
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2GVAiJJ
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