This is how Thiem fights his way out of his lowest point

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No, it’s not porn this time either. Just Dominic Thiem, who works hard at the “Caja Magica” facility in Madrid – a loud moan with every hit. So far so familiar to the 29-year-old Austrian. And yet his sounds on the square always cause amused reactions. Like a few days ago, when the Polish world number 15 Hubert Hurkacz (26) said on Instagram: “You moaned so loud that you disturbed the doubles I played on the other side of the fence.”

Thiem promptly responds, writing below, “Hahahaha sorry bro.” He takes it with humor. Like last summer, when he launched a police operation in his home country. Residents of the Traiskirchen tennis academy suspected by the loud moans that a slippery video was being recorded nearby.

Even then, the 2020 US Open winner readily said, “This isn’t the first time people have complained. But it’s always funny and not incomprehensible. It can get loud and weird.”

Coach change and uptrend after deep fall

Thiem found the past two years anything but funny. Slowed by a wrist injury, he temporarily dropped to 352nd. Since then, the two-time French Open finalist has played like a shadow of herself. At the beginning of the year, he described his path as “complete torture” and constantly “up and down”: “So it’s hard that the whole thing is still fun.”

Meanwhile, however, the man from Lichtenwörth in Lower Austria seems to be slowly fighting back. With place 93 he is better than he has been classified for a year. And he also takes small steps forward in terms of results: quarter finals in Estoril, second round in Monte Carlo, quarter finals in Munich and finally the excellent second round match in Madrid against Stefanos Tsitsipas (24). He lost this after three sets 6:3, 1:6, 6:7 (5:7), but with his spectacular shots caused even more enthusiasm than was already the case after his convincing victory over Kyle Edmund (28) at the Start . Even Tsitsipas was impressed and then, shaking hands, said, “You’ve got it in you. Keep it up, you can do it!”

Thiem’s ​​statements also sound much more positive than those at the beginning of the year: “It was a super bitter defeat, but at the same time very motivating for the coming weeks.” The work with his new coach Benjamin Ebrahimzadeh (43), who previously had German top player Angelique Kerber (35) under his wing, seems to be paying off. With a view to the French Open at the end of the month, Thiem explains: “Actually, it goes uphill every week. If it continues like this, I am confident that I will be in a good mood in Paris.”

It’s not just his relaxed moaning response that is noticeable: at least he seems to have found looseness off the field again.

Source : Blick