Ex-Thiem trainer Bresnik: “It’s like sweeping dirt under the carpet”

Austria’s number one Dominic Thiem, will start his tenth French Open in Paris on Whit Monday. His last win in one of the four tennis major tournaments was almost two and a half years ago. After a remarkable five-set win over Nick Kyrgios at the Australian Open 2021, Grigor Dimitrov was eliminated in the round of 16. After that, he was eliminated four times in round one and there was an almost ten-month injury break.

➤ More on that: Ofner in round two, Thiem plays on Monday

“Of course I want to savor a victory in a Grand Slam tournament again, that was almost two and a half years ago,” said Thiem on Friday in Roland Garros. spoke in advance The press with Thiem’s ​​ex-trainer Gunter Bresnik. This holds the new coach of the Lower Austrian, the German Benjamin Ebrahimzadeh, for a good choice. “One who can also change something in Dominic’s game and not just manage it,” said Bresnik.

“No 20 players who are better”

For the 62-year-old, it is essential that the coach doesn’t think short-term: “It’s like sweeping dirt under the carpet. You’ll never fix the mistakes in your game like that. A good coach gives an athlete what he needs, and not what he wants.” On the other hand, he can’t do much with mental training: “If I have a car with an engine failure, I don’t have to rack my brains about how to drive around the corner. First and foremost, the car has to be roadworthy.”

In any case, Thiem shouldn’t think too much about what will happen in two or three years. Austria’s number one will be 30 years old in September. “He should only think about what is important for him now. If I want to climb Mount Everest, I don’t have to think about how to do the last 400 meters, but how to get to the base camp in Kathmandu.” In any case, he trusts Thiem to make it into the top 20 by the end of the year. “For me, there are no 20 players who are better than him. Provided Dominic gets 80 or 90 percent of his maximum performance.

Bresnik also commented in the press on the currently best Austrian, Julia Grabher. The Vorarlberg native trains under Bresnik. “Julia is a super athlete, moves exceptionally well, especially for a woman. And more importantly, she’s a hard worker,” says the trainer, full of praise: “There’s absolutely no reason why she can’t make the top 50 should be – or even in the top 20.”

➤ More: Grabher missed the title in Rabat after the final thriller

Bresnik, on the other hand, can’t do anything with the long-simmering prize money debate among women and men: “No one gets upset that female models are better known and earn more than male ones. Demand determines the price, regardless of gender.”