Dominic Thiem reveals his best match against Big Three – ‘The outcome was just amazing’
Dominic Thiem won 16 matches in total against Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, but one match in particular stands out for the Austrian.
Former world No 3 Thiem always held his own against the Big Three on the ATP Tour as he had a 5-2 winning record against Federer, was 5-7 against Djokovic and 6-10 against Nadal.
The 2020 US Open winner, who has retired from the game following his struggle with a wrist injury and form over the past few years, was asked about his best match against the three legends and he had no hesitation picking out his 2019 ATP Finals win over Djokovic.
The pair met in the round-robin phase and it was a titanic battle with the Austrian emerging with a 6–7 (5–7), 6–3, 7–6 (7–5) in two hours and 47 minutes.
During an interview with UTS, Thiem said: “I think against Novak in 2019 in the [ATP] Finals in London. I would always say when I get asked that this was the best I ever played.
“I woke up sick actually and I think that gave me a little bit of looseness to let go. I was in great shape playing-wise back then and I was loosening up a little bit as I said.
“Anyway, I only wanted to go on court and not get sicker and then I started to play loose and looser than ever before or after and the outcome was just amazing and it really was enjoyable.”
Thiem also beat Federer in the group stage and he reached the final before losing against Stefanos Tsitsipas.
The following year he again beat Djokovic in the ATP Finals, this time in the last four as he claimed a 7-5, 6-7 (10-12), 7-6 (7-5) win just under three hours.
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Thiem retired from tennis after his home tournament in Vienna in October, winning one Grand Slam and finishing runner-up in three other major finals. In total, he won 17 ATP Tour singles titles.
He previously admitted that the Big Three contributed to his injury as he pushed himself to the limit in order to compete against them.
“That contributed to the injury, definitely,” the 31-year-old said. “I was competing with the three greatest of all time. That was intense.
“But also, all the years before I always had a big load and intensity in my practice. That’s something the doctor and many other people said: that at one point the wrist broke because of all the shots I did, all the hard practice I did all those years before.
“I was always striving to get better and get even closer to the best players in the world.
“I consider myself lucky to be in that timeline with the Big Three and all the other great players.”
