Weird stuff in Indian Wells after Dominic Thiem upsets Roger Federer on Sunday to claim his 1st Master ATP1000 title.
Roger Federer was the overwhelming favorite to win the title in Indian Wells after a compelling run that allowed the Maestro to get to the final without dropping a single set and after spending not much time on court. Roger arrived “fresh” to the last act of the tournament also because he didn’t play the semifinal following Rafael Nadal’s retirement.
On the other side, Dominic Thiem had to battle against Milos Raonic in the final 4 before winning 7-6 (3) 6-7 (3) 6-4 in 2 hours and 31 minutes. Before Indian Wells, Dominic was also experiencing an extremely disappointing 2019 after he lost in the 1st round in Doha and Rio de Janeiro and he crashed out in the 2nd round at the Australian Open. The Austrian was also unable to go beyond the semifinal at the ATP250 in Buenos Aires. Things changed dramatically in Indian Wells where Dominic surprised playing very good and solid tennis.
The final
After Federer grabbed a quick 3-0 lead in the opening set, it seemed that the Swiss legend was about to make a meal of his opponent. Roger was in full control of most of the exchanges and Dominic looked completely unable to fight back.
However, things started to change after Thiem broke Federer unexpectedly in the 7th game after playing exceptionally well (4-3). Roger was extremely sharp in breaking back the Austrian (5-3) before securing the opening set (6-3), but it was clear that Federer had to work hard to win this encounter.
After a couple of tough holds at the beginning of the 2nd set, Thiem managed to break Federer in the 4th game (3-1) before consolidating the lead (4-1) and win the set 6-3.
The service games completely dominated the decider until the 8th game when Dominic managed to hold after saving a break point. The contest was decided in the 11th game when Federer wasn’t able to hold to be broken at 30. The Austrian didn’t miss the chance to serve out the match and win the contest 3-6 6-3 7-5. This fight ended after 2 hours and 2 minutes.
This is Dominic’s 12th career and most important title. The Austrian will be ranked no.4 on Monday equalling his highest rank (Nov 2017). It’s interesting the fact that even if Dominic is a clay court specialist, he won his maiden title on hard courts and after beating Federer that won 5 titles in Indian Wells.
That’s the beauty of tennis.
Roger Federer vs Dominic Thiem – Indian Wells Final | Full Match Highlights
| MOST IMPORTANT TITLE OF HIS CAREER |
| Embed from Getty Images |
