Can Dominic Thiem make a winning return? Is the Serbian Open a golden opportunity before Roland Garros?
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Dominic Thiem
Currently ranked 51st in the world, Dominic Thiem will finally return to the ATP Tour after nearly 10 months of absence due to a wrist injury. The Austrian had injured his wrist during the inaugural 2021 Mallorca Championships in June in the build-up to the 2021 Wimbledon Championships.
With a possible surgery looming over him, Thiem was lucky to not require the surgery eventually as a regular rehab saw him recover from it. Thiem was supposed to start his season in February when the Tour moved down to South America for the initial Clay season but Thiem pulled out due to not being completely ready. He looked certain for another successful return but he tested positive for Covid-19 and was sidelined once again.
The 2020 US Open champ finally has luck on his side as he is now set to make his debut at the Serbian Open when he takes the field for his first-round encounter at the 2022 Serbian Open played at the Novak Tennis Center in Belgrade. Having lost in the Challenger match last month, his only Professional match of the season so far, Thiem will look to make a good run going into the tournament.
Given his affinity towards Clay, Thiem is looking forward to a good Clay season that will build-up to the 2022 French Open as he has been a 2-time runner-up at the Roland Garros in 2018 and 2019 with Rafael Nadal taking him down on both occasions.
Why is the Serbian Open a great chance for Dominic Thiem to return to his best
With the event in Belgrade being an ATP-250 category event, it is a perfect opportunity for the Austrian to return to form for multiple reasons. With only a handful of players in good form despite being big names including that of 20-time major winner Novak Djokovic who will play just his 3rd tournament of the season, Thiem has a rather open field.
The ATP-500 Barcelona Open has attracted higher ranked players and had it not been Novak’s hometown event, the World No. 1 might have skipped it as well. This gives good ground for Thiem to cover as despite not being in the best of forms, he will be better experienced than the majority of the players and it can certainly help him regain his confidence going into the higher category events in the season ahead.
The doubt would certainly be there if Thiem can actually go on to win the 2022 French Open. Looking at the rankings right now, it is highly unlikely that Thiem can add to his Grand Slam tally in Paris this year. A deep run can however be on the cards as he is well suited to the surface and still has more than a month to be back in shape. But a title challenge remains a big doubt as he is just back from recovering from Covid as well which is known to affect the fitness of players.
Thiem starts against John Millman in the first round in Belgrade starting next week and could meet Djokovic as well in a potential quarter-final clash. The 2022 Serbian Open starts on 18th April with the finals scheduled on 24th April.
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Sarthak Shitole
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