'We would beat Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic now', says ATP ace

The Australian adventure for US Open 2020 champion Dominic Thiem does not begin in the best way. Just hours before leaving for Adelaide, where he will spend the pre-tournament quarantine, the Austrian player has been informed by his coach Nicolas Massu that he will have to face the start of the trip to Australia without him. Massu in fact tested positive for COVID-19 while he was in his home in Chile. The news was confirmed by Wolfgang Thiem, Dominic's father, to the Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung. “We'll have to do without Nico for the first week or two, but I'll be there, and we'll train with Dennis Novak. It should be fine anyway”. Hope remains that Massu will reach Australia after overcoming his illness, but he will still have to go through quarantine before being able to fully return to his duties as a coach. “He will do another test in the next few days. As soon as he is negative he can join us ”confirmed Wolfgang Thiem. The Austrian team, however, may not have come to terms with the very strict Australian protocols. In fact, Rafael Nadal's coach, Carlos Moya, decided to stay in Spain and follow the tournament remotely because he only wanted to arrive before the Australian Open, but the procedures do not allow separate arrivals for the tennis teams. If there’s one player to look out for in 2021, it will surely be Dominic Thiem. The 27-year-old Austrian recently won his maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open 2020 and will hope to continue his incredible form in the next season too. However, his competition will not be any easier as he’ll still have to face and beat the Big Three i.e Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer in order to lift more titles.

Thiem on facing the Big 3

“Maybe then, (when Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic retirement) it will be a little easier to win the big tournaments,” Dominic Thiem said. “We would beat the big three now. So theoretically,” continued Thiem with a laugh. Dominic Thiem is one of those two players who have enjoyed at least five victories against each of the Big Three. He has six wins against Nadal and five each against Federer and Djokovic. The Austrian is surely a threat to the Big Three and will look forward to outplay them in 2021. Thiem will begin his 2021 season at the ATP Cup 2021. 

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3nUVtxR