“I am definitely back” Dominic Thiem riding high on confidence as he makes the quarter-finals for the first time in 14 months

World No. 339 and former World No. 3 Dominic Thiem is currently playing at the 2022 Nordea Open in Sweden with the Austrian into the quarter-finals after defeating World No. 20 Roberto Bautista Agut. Thiem won the match 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-4 after a close battle with the Spaniard who returned to action for the first time since the 2022 Wimbledon Championships where he tested positive for Covid-19 prior to his second round match.

Roberto had 101 points while Thiem had 97 points to his name but the Austrian was the winner in Bastad however coming in clutch in the important moments of the match. After a tight first-set tiebreaker, the second set was easily taken by Agut who is also a good player on Clay. With all to play for in the third set, Thiem held his ground to take the win and enter the last-8 of the tournament.

Also Read: “Watch and then form an opinion” Novak Djokovic announces the release date for his upcoming documentary covering his 2021 season and deportation

A tricky test for Dominic Thiem in the quarter-finals

Speaking about his win, Thiem said, “It is great to play here. It is an amazing atmosphere and I am so happy that I won today so I can have at least another match tomorrow. It was really good. It is a process. I beat [Emil] Ruusuvuori and today I beat Bautista Agut. Two really top opponents, so if I can beat them I am definitely back, I am into the quarters of a really strong tournament, so I am happy. It is a process, but I am going the right way.”

“The win against Emil gave me confidence that I can compete against the best players in the world and today against Roberto. He is always such a tough opponent. I was expecting and hoping it would be a close match. Then when I won the first set in the tie-break I said ‘Hey, I can win today.’ I had the belief until the end of the match and the third set was really good,” added the Austrian who looks to make a massive jump in his ranking after this week.

Thiem will now take on Argentine Sebastian Baez who has been great on clay as well. Baez has reached 2 claycourt finals already this season winning the title in Lyon. Baez comes into the match with a straight-set win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and is the 8th seed at the event this week.

Also Read: “I think it’s incredible that he’s standing by his principles,” Renowned political journalist defends Novak Djokovic’s stance on his vaccination status

Also Read: “He is the most famous person who’s ever texted me” Felix Auger-Aliassime recalls the text he received from Roger Federer

Follow our page FirstSportz Tennis for the latest updates

Stay Updated!

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW