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by Dominic Thiem the last highlight of the year is the ATP Finals in London. Your manager Herwig Straka He relies on the world number three after surviving a foot injury.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edition: 11/11/2020, 21:55
© GEPA Images
Just one day after Dominic Thiem was named Austrian Sportsman of the Year for the first time, the Austrian from Lower Austria went to the ATP Finals in London. In addition to coach Nicolas Massu, physio Alex Stober, brother Moritz, there was also coach Herwig Straka, who commented on the condition of his protégé before the game.
“He is fully fit again. Dominic has been training fully for several days and is in a very good mood,” said the Styrian, giving hope to Austrian tennis fans. The one injury Thiem had hindered at the ATP 500 tournament in Vienna no longer causes problems, but Straka knows that a win in the ATP Finals is arguably the biggest challenge in men’s tennis.
Thiem faces opponents in top form
Because like every year, the eight best players of the season meet at the end of the year. This year, in addition to favorites Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, Paris winners Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev, Diego Schwartzman and Thiem are also part of the party.
Lichtenwörther will not enter the last tournament of the year with too much amazement. “He’s in a good mood, he’s already beaten everyone there and anything is possible,” said Straka, who also knows the great form of some of the London starters: “There are some players in great form. Rublev, Medvedev, Sascha Zverev, Djokovic It’s different than usual when one part was already tired or injured. That certainly doesn’t make it any easier. “
Simple, that is already clear before the draw on Thursday night (5:45 pm CET), the Thiems group will not be either. But also in 2019, the 27-year-old caught a group of hammers, but beat Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic on it. His great form led Thiem to the final, where he was only beaten by Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third set tie break.
Despite missing the title, Straka still sees last year’s great run as a big step in his protégé’s development: “London was extremely important to him, it was, as many people there said, a kind of changing of the guard. They were all at the start, and Two Next Generation Players played the Final against an incredible backdrop. It was an extremely important learning process for Dominic and also for Tsitsipas. It was also extremely important for self-confidence and position in the tour “.
Straka doesn’t see a favorite
Nonetheless, Novak Djokovic is the bookmaker’s favorite for the title. “I think Medvedev, Rublev, Dominic and also Zverev are close. I dare not say that one is more favorite than the others,” says Straka. This year, the field of participants is also very even in terms of form.
In light of this, a prediction for the ATP Finals is, like almost every year, almost impossible to make. According to Straka, surviving the group stage is Thiem’s goal: “If he wins more than one match in the preliminary round and reaches the semi-finals or finals, that would be incredible.”
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