Dominic Thiem announced that he would not compete in the upcoming Australian Open. This news is not completely unexpected since the 2020 US Open champion already retired from the ATP Cup. Cordoba will be his first tournament.
This was Thiem’s statement.
“Hi everyone!
As you all know, I came back home to Austria to recover after the hard practice sessions I had in Dubai and the slight set back in my preparation. I am now feeling well again, my wrist is in optimal conditions and I am practicing normally with very good intensity.
After the short holidays, my team and I have assessed all matters and we have decided to make some changes to my initial tournament schedule: I will start the season in South America at the Cordoba Open in Argentina, end of January, and therefore I will not play this year at the Australian Open in Melbourne, a city that I love and where I have great memories of unforgettable matches in front of amazing crowds. I will miss the Australian fans but I will be back in 2023.
We believe this is the right decision in order to have a good return to the competition. For the moment I will remain in Austria for a few more days and then head to practice outdoors and get ready for my first event of the season.
I take the opportunity to wish you all a Happy and successful New Year with lots of health!
Yours,
Dominic”
Federer, Nadal, Dokovic
Dominic joins Roger Federer in not playing the first major of the year. There are also serious doubts about the participation of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
Nadal did not look at his very best during the Mubadala World Tennis Championship and he made it clear that he was not sure if he would participate in the Australian Open. Later, Rafa announced that he got infected by the Coronavirus to make it even harder to think he will play in Melbourne.
Novak Djokovic has already withdrawn from the ATP Cup and he will probably skip the Australian Open because that he needs to be vaccinated in order to compete. He is notoriously against vaccination.
Dominic Thiem in 2021
LLLLLLWLWL Ranked no.15, Thiem played his last match on the 22nd of June when he had to retire when playing against world no.71 Adrian Mannarino in the 2nd round and the scoreline was 2-5 .
Presently, during this year Thiem has achieved a 9-9 win-loss record. Dominic Thiem’s most significant result of this season was reaching the semifinal in Madrid.
