Dominic Thiem was among Rafael Nadal’s great rivals at Roland Garros between 2017 and 2019. The Austrian scored notable victories in Paris during those three seasons to set up the showdown against the king of clay. Rafa was too strong in all three games, knocking Dominic down and extending his incredible run at Roland Garros.
The two rivals met in the 2019 final, with the Spaniard scoring a 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 victory in three hours to clinch his 12th Roland Garros title and 18th French Major. Patrick McEnroe watched the match from the stands and was impressed with Nadal’s performance in the first five games.
In fact, Rafa didn’t take command until the middle of the set, recovering a break and chaining four consecutive games to win the first set 6-3 and gain momentum. Thiem rallied in the second set and matched the pace of his opponent.
He served well and broke at 6-5 to level the score and gain confidence. Rather than take advantage of that, the Austrian faded off the court in sets three and four, allowing the Spaniard to lift his 12th title in Paris. At 33, Nadal became the third oldest champion in Paris in the Open era after Andrés Gimeno (1972) and Ken Rosewall (1968).
Rafa grabbed 45% of the return points, breaking Dominic seven times out of 13 chances and suffering just two breaks. He increased the pressure on the young opponent and broke his resistance after the second set. The Spaniard prevailed with 38 winners and 31 unforced errors.
He dominated the rallies and stopped Thiem with 31 winners and 38 errors after a rock-solid performance that left Dominic unchallenged after the second set. “I went to Roland Garros as a fan. Dominic Thiem played very well that year, reaching the final and facing Rafael Nadal.
We all thought Thiem could win a Major in Paris, and he ended up winning the US Open a year later.”
Thiem looks back on his complicated comeback
Dominic Thiem, currently 99th in the world, seems to be back in good physical shape after his very bad wrist injury.
The Austrian is engaged on clay in Buenos Aires this week. For the occasion, the winner of the US Open 2020 was interviewed by our Argentinian colleagues from Olé. He looks back on his complicated comeback and all his confrontations against the BIG 3.
Remember that Dominic Thiem is one of the only players to have beaten them on several occasions, whether Novak Djokovic (5 times), Roger Federer (5 times) and Rafael Nadal (6 times). According to him, everyone is unique and that is what makes their reputation, there is no GOAT.
“I have a great relationship with all of them, I get along very well with all three and I admire them all equally. All the time people talk about who is better than the other and it’s not really good. I don’t like to say that.
I think it’s a disrespect to all of them, they’ve all done amazing things, which probably no one else will ever do in their lifetime. There is not just one GOAT, all three deserve it because they are unique,” said the Austrian.
