Although the 26-year-old from Lichtenwörther, like his opponents, took numerous tennis show tournaments more seriously than usual in the corona crisis, the return to the ATP tour is a completely different caliber. On Saturday, Thiem will travel to New York with coach Nicolas Massu and physio Alex Stober.
There the world number three, whose year began so well with the finals at the Australian Open, is preparing for two tournaments. Unusual times also required unusual measures for tournament organizers: The Cincinnati Masters 1000 tournament was moved from Ohio to Flushing Meadows. There a “bubble”, as we know it from the NHL or NBA, is created, in which the players and their decimated entourage only commute between a hotel on Long Island and the gymnastics venue. After the 1000 event, the US Open will take place in the same venue as usual.
From August 22nd, exactly six months after Thiem’s last match so far (quarter-finals in Rio de Janeiro), the 1000 event will begin. But for the purpose of acclimatization, Thiem arrives on August 15th. And with him also his main coach, who had only seen Thiem from a distance for four months.
Nicolas Massu has been working intensively with the three-time major finalist again since Tuesday. The Chilean, once Olympic champion in singles and doubles, knows about the extraordinary situation in Corona times. “Of course things will not be normal there. On the other hand, the tournaments have to start again at some point,” said Massu at a media appointment on Wednesday evening at a wine tavern in Vienna.
There will be very strict rules for tournaments without spectators. “If you don’t follow the rules, you will be disqualified. But you have to respect that because they go to great lengths to host the tournament. I think it will work,” said Massu optimistically. The high number of coronavirus cases in the USA should not play a role due to the rigorous creation of a bubble in which a greatly reduced tournament train moves.
It is understandable that a Rafael Nadal as defending champion may not travel to New York either because he will retain the points from 2019 thanks to a special world ranking system. Thiem, on the other hand, has nothing to lose: he had to skip Cincinnati last year when he was ill and a viral infection stopped him in round one at the US Open. So he can score fully.
“One thing is the ranking and the points, the other is that the players want to play. Dominic loves to play tournaments, they have all been waiting for months now,” said Massu. The South American sees an advantage in the fact that Thiem has the most match practice among the top stars thanks to many show tournaments that were also taken very seriously by all players.
Thiem, who gained two to three kilos of muscle mass on his upper body during the lockdown or the tournament break, impressed Massu at the show tournaments in Kitzbühel and Berlin. “There I saw him really strong. He looks very good physically, has good energy. It will also be crucial how you do it from the head. And it will be interesting to see how you play in a big stadium without fans . “
Massu tries again to avoid talking about a final or even the first title. “Djokovic and Dominic and maybe one more are the favorites. He was closer to the first Grand Slam victory at the Australian Open than at the French Open – at a hard court tournament in January. So you never know what will happen,” said Massu the five-movement thriller against Djokovic. His protégé is traveling to the USA with the confidence that he was close to winning the last slam to date.
Massu does not see a devaluation due to the cancellation of Nadal and the absence of Roger Federer. “85 to 90 percent of the players named. The players always want to win against the best in the world, but if you look at the list … Just because Federer and Nadal are not driving, it won’t be an easy draw.”
Could there be any big surprises after such a long break? “It could be. It’s not easy if you don’t play for six months. But the players who made the difference before the break will do it again, that’s why they’re so good.”
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