Google News
World No. 3 Dominic Thiem has revealed that losing the Australian Open final was more painful than losing two finals at the French Open. The Austrian made his maiden Grand Slam final at the French Open in 2018 but stood no chance against world No.
2 Rafael Nadal as the Spaniard claimed a comfortable straight-set win in the final. A year later, the two met again in the final at Roland Garros and the outcome wasn't that much different as Nadal beat Thiem in four sets to claim a record 12th French Open title.
Earlier this year, Thiem made his third Grand Slam final and was on the verge of claiming a maiden Major title but fell just short as world No. 1 Novak Djokovic recovered from two sets to one down in the final to win it all.
"It was very painful to lose the Australian Open final. I suffered a lot after that. In the Roland Garros finals I was always far from winning, but in Australia I was two sets to one up, with break point in the fourth set. It was tough, but on the other hand I lost only to Nadal and Djokovic in Grand Slam finals.
After remembering that, it was easier to digest," Thiem told ATP Radio, as revealed on Bola Amarela.
But still it was the biggest achievement ever for Dominic Thiem
Thiem, who considers clay as his favorite surface, beat three top-10 players -- Gael Monfils, Nadal and Alexander Zverev -- before he lost to Djokovic in the final at Melbourne Park.
"Getting to the Australian Open final is the biggest achievement of my career. I had to overcome some difficulties on and off the court. I beat three top-10 players in a row and then lost to the best player in the history of that tournament in five balanced sets," Thiem said.
Winning Vienna last year was something really special for the Austrian as he said: "Emotionally, winning Vienna in 2019 was my greatest achievement. I was in that tournament since I was a kid, I won my first ATP match there, the atmosphere was incredible and raising that trophy at the end is something I still can't believe." It remains to be seen if Dominic Thiem will manage to win a Grand Slam title while the Big Three are still around.