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The fifth en suite semi-final at Roland Garros was no longer awarded to US Open winner Dominic Thiem. The effort of both the weeks in New York and the short recovery time before the French Open was too great. A second match of five straight sets was just too much. Thiem, who was twice en suite in the “City of Love” final, missed another test of strength with Rafael Nadal. Diego Schwartzman now receives this.
Schwartzman won Tuesday’s ninth game with Thiem after a 5:08 hour marathon with 7: 6.5: 7.6: 7.7: 6.6: 2. The 27-year-old from Lower Austria played the 18th game of his career at five sets (balance now 10: 8 wins), a happy ending as in the final in New York in 2: 6.4: 6.6: 4.6: 3, 7: 6 (6) over Alexander Zverev was denied this time.
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“It was a special match. It was the first game for me in more than five hours in my career, quite brutal conditions, a real roller coaster ”, Thiem looked back. He already ran with the reserve tank, the five-set match against Hugo Gaston with more than 50 stops from the Frenchman had already demanded a lot from Thiem. “The adrenaline hides a lot. I kept running hundreds of times from left to right, I didn’t feel that way anyway, ”explained Thiem, who also received many praise from tennis experts for his fitness. Take Patrick Mouratoglou, Serena Williams’ coach, for example. “Many wonder how he can still have so much energy. Look at how the man trains, his intensity, his work ethic and you will not ask that question again, ”tweeted the coach with his own academy in France.
The fifth set begins and many are wondering how Domi can still have energy after 4h30 of the match, his second consecutive game of five sets and after winning the US Open a few weeks ago.
Well, look at how this man practices, his intensity, his work ethic and you will not ask this question anymore.– Patrick Mouratoglou (@pmouratoglou) October 6, 2020
Thiem stated that I had “lost a very small part of my intensity” against both Gaston and Schwartzman. Highs and lows are normal in a five-set match. However, according to Thiem, there was more to it than in Flushing Meadows. “In the first three rounds I didn’t have that at all, in the fourth round I kind of struggled to get out.” Even against Schwartzman it was almost possible. But at some point, the later he gets into a Grand Slam, the opponent just gets too strong. That’s why Diego also deservedly won in the fifth, ”said Thiem, who had warmly congratulated his good friend on the net after leaving.
After all the effort, was he a little surprised that he even had a five-hour match up his sleeve? “In a way I am. It also gives me a bit of confidence for future Grand Slam tournaments where, even if I no longer feel at the top, I still play for five hours at a very high level. “
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Plus, you’ll be better prepared for your next major. “Of course, it is an incredible experience to play five hours for the first time.” Aside from the fifth sentence (“I got down a bit”), I had no real physical problems.
In particular, he didn’t want to hang it, despite the cool and rainy conditions. “The temperature doesn’t change when the roof is closed because it blows from the sides anyway.” However, the cold temperature costs “real strength”, even if that applies to all players. “You play with incredible intensity, then you switch sides and when you get up you’re a little stiff, it’s cold. Conditions are brutal for all players, but that’s the way it is in October in Paris. “
If politics or health authorities control the coronavirus pandemic, the 2021 French Open will be held again on the usual date in late May / early June. Until then, Thiem will keep the 1,200 points of the 2019 final in the ranking thanks to the ATP special rule. His 1,200 points from the Australian Open final, on the other hand, are already on the line before that: in the next big tournament in January, for which the full safety and quarantine regulations are already known.
But now Thiem will finally celebrate his first Grand Slam title for a bit. “I haven’t done it yet,” said Thiem, who now has two and a half weeks to defend his title in Vienna. After that, the Masters 1000 event in Paris again, this time in the East at the Bercy hall, and the ATP finals in London are on the agenda. If Corona allows it. “You don’t know now what is happening. I heard that Paris is still being discussed, but it should take place sooner than not, and I think the exact same applies to London as well. “
(WHAT)
Photo: GEPA
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