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After his most exciting semi-final win over Novak Djokovic, Dominic Thiem is now in the final of the ATP Finals for the second time after four major finals.
5.30 am, November 22, 2020
After his first Grand Slam win in New York, the 27-year-old appears ready to take the next step. Dominic Thiem commented on some questions in his Zoom video press conference after his semi-final win against Novak Djokovic:
You are only the second player after Andy Murray, who now has at least five wins against Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. How much does this affect your confidence?
Dominic Thiem: This is very special to me. Today was my 300th Tour win and then beating each of the three greatest players of all time five times is great for me. A great statistic, but every game against them is a privilege and a great opportunity to learn from them. When you hit these people, it gives you a huge confidence boost.
Australian Open final, US Open title, now here in the final again – is your quest for number 1 now the big goal for 2021?
Yes, I haven’t thought about it yet. I said I want to finish the best I can for once this week. So you have to see how things go with Australia. As soon as it is clear, as soon as the preparation begins, I will certainly want to set new goals or targets for 2021. Of course, number 1 will come into play here too, that is very clear. But it is always connected in some way. The biggest goal will always be to play really well in the biggest tournaments like here or in the Grand Slams and the 1000s. If I can do that consistently hopefully there will be a normal season again next year so maybe I can do it.
I want to set new goals for 2021. After all, number 1 comes into play.
Dominic Thiem
Can any issues arise from not winning in straight sets today and what do you think about the fact that he might have to beat Nadal again to get the title?
In fact, I am happy to have won the match. In the second set of the tie-break I was very nervous. I’m not allowed to say it, but I knew before the second it was going to be a Doppler because I was shaking most of my body. I saw again how important the tournament is and how important the victories against the great players are. I am incredibly happy about that.
He knew beforehand that it was going to be a Doppler because he was shaking almost all over his body.
Dominic Thiem
What do you think of the possible final opponents?
It doesn’t really matter who comes along, Rafael Nadal or Daniil Medvedev. Topping off the week after such a match today and a group stage by beating Nadal or Medvedev again shows just how tough the tournament is. When it comes to Nadal, I will definitely think about the group game because it was an amazing game. If it’s Medvedev, I will definitely watch the US Open play him there. It will be an open and closed game again, no matter against whom.
