Dominic Thiem is in the quarterfinals of the ATP 250 tournament in Gijon, Spain. After falling behind in a set, the Austrian defeated the American Marcos Giron (ATP-62nd) after 2:24 hours 3: 6 6: 4 6: 0 in a long-fought game. After his strong performance in the first round on Monday, the former third in the world rankings found it noticeably more difficult this time.
Ups and downs alternated for two sets in the game for the 29-year-old from Lower Austria, who will return to the top 150 in the world rankings with this success. After a weak start and a quick 0:2 deficit, Thiem got into the game better and turned the match to 3:2. But then he lost the thread again and gave up the first round after a break to make it 3:5.
In the second set, the game went back and forth, and the Austrian missed numerous break chances. But after 1:15 hours, which the second set alone had lasted, Thiem equalized to 1: 1 with the fourth set ball. In the third round, however, the 2020 US Open winner was back in full swing. Body language, running performance and the precision of the shots were right again. With 6: 0 Thiem Giron gave no more chance.
“I wanted too much”
The Austrian summed up with relief: “It was a very intense match, with long rallies and a lot of running work. It was very close, a lot could happen at the end of the second set. Marcos (Giron, note) was close to winning. Then in the third I had a run so it was a great night for me.”
Thiem explained the difference to his sovereign performance on Monday in the first round against the Portuguese Joao Sousa, to whom he had only left two games, with his own expectations: “I was very nervous at the beginning because I was so good on Monday. I wanted too much, so I wasn’t as free as on Monday. Marcos played very well. But you have to get through games like that. I’m very happy with the win.”
ATP 250 Tournament in Gijon
(Spanien, 612.000 Euro, Hardcourt/Indoor)
