I think Thiem is in major decline. Forehand no longer a real weapon. The injury's lasting effects and loss of confidence is all too evident these days.
I agree, and it makes me so sad.
As a keen amatuer, and 1HBH player, his is the most beautiful on the tour now that Fed is gone. I love watching in form Thiem. He's got all the raw ingredients to be a top 10 fixture, but I'm starting to think that the injury and fall in rankings has just broken him.
I don't think he is able to anymore with his damaged wrist.
I don't see a reason otherwise, he doesn't hit with more power in practice either so it doesn't look like a confidence issue.
However his backhand can still be a rocket because he use the other side of the wrist.
So I guess the problem is purely physical.
I wonder if a racquet switch would help? Ive played with the pure strike and it was quite stiff and uncomfortable to play with. I know everyone has their own preference for racquets but maybe he should try a frame thats a bit more flexible.
I definitely think it's mental and not physical, Murray recently also said that it looks like he is playing with a mental-wrist and knows how he's feeling because of his hip.
He seems to be in a tailspin that he is finding hard to get out of. Was really the heir apparent to Nadal on clay. Hoping that he does recover and adds a few Roland Garros crowns once the titans of the game inevitably start exiting. A certain Carlitos may have something to say about that.
Hopefully the current generation can stay healthy. There is something about the racket take back that is unique and seemingly dangerous to my uneducated eye. Those biomechanics need to be studied by disciplines trained to analyze them.
People are gonna say thiem was close to winning, but losing in any fashion to mannarino on a relatively slow court is terrible, yet reflective of his post-injury form as of late. As a thiem fan, I’m getting more than concerned at this point
He had won 16 sets in a row against Mannarino and as you said this is like the perfect HC for Thiem and a nightmare for Mannarino, who's also 34 and not at his peak anymore
A huge part of his struggle is mental, he even admitted that he has issues in that department. However, I don’t think he is looking for help actively. Understanding and admitting the issue is the first step, but he should really try and work with a mental coach. Trying to continue the same way as usual probably won’t lead anywhere.
100% agree. Of course, no one will know until it's all said and done, but I feel it's mental, not physical. Since he's been back, I haven't seen any sign that his wrist is impacting him. Also, many are forgetting that his performance woes actually began before his wrist injury.
Yes, it’s like when he realized that everything he ever worked for came true by winning the US Open. Winning a slam was everything he ever wanted and when it sank in before the 2021 season it seemed he lost his bite.
Of course that’s speculation, but in his interviews it sounded as his motivation isn’t the same as it was before.
And the injury didn’t help either as I think he’s afraid to hit as hard as he could. Understandably so.
There were some moments were he certainly found his groove on forehand but then again the moments like disaster of finish to the second set and end of tiebreak where he brain farts. It’s just mental.
Not to be dramatic but for me it's like this, you can take either many positives or many negatives out of this match. Yet another tight match heartbreaker, couldn't be solid or confident enough to finish or pull through. Effects of the injury still evident, but he moved better here than I've arguably seen since the injury. And he played better than I've seen all year. He just didn't have the confidence to finish it off. He is improving though and it almost feels like he can't take another tight loss like this, this is the last punch, either it's the start for the end and a match like this shows it, or it shows he's still got good (improving) tennis to show but just needs the match wins and confidence to finish matches off.
but I think Domi can take positives from this and I'm hoping that this is the start for better play from him and going into the clay he loves too, hopefully he can show up with this kind of form and just get some freaking matches under his belt. Personally don't think he's done or anything, hell of a player and the magic wins saving match points vs. wolf hurkacz paul last season has me still believing he's got some fight, some heart left in em and some good tennis to show. Just hopefully he can start ending up on the winning side a few more times, eh? cause I can't handle another Domi 7-6 in the third ngl. Regardless what happens, this one's gonna hurt for a little while. what a heartbreaker
The worst part is, the wrist is everything. His entire forehand and even the bite on his backhand has turned to shit because of it.
I suppose a lot of it is precautionary to ensure he doesn't permanently damage his wrist again, but it sucks so much to see one of the most devastating FH getting reduced to this error prone Topspin mess.
As Andy showed, process takes a very long time to come back from, so I'll stay hopeful. Let's see what happens in the future.
Personally I feel like his goal rn should be getting the wrist to pre injury levels. Atleast 90% of those levels before he can start thinking about seriously challenging on the tour. Or else go down a level and build some confidence. Even Andy played in challengers when he needed to.
This is exactly what I keep saying. He is clearly not at the level to compete with anyone in the top 100, and also because of an unusual rule, his reliance on receiving wildcards is actually hurting more than helping him because players who enter Slams and M1000s as wildcards actually cannot afford to lose R1 if they actually want to gain points. This rule meant not just this tournament, but also AO this year and USO last year, where his R1 losses as a wildcard caused those results on his ranking to be voided and actually resulted in being deducted 20 points for those void results. At this rate he is unlikely to make direct entry for RG, so unless he signs up for qualies instead of getting a wildcard, he’ll have yet another major tournament result that is voided and that he cannot replace without a deep 250 or 500 run.
Miami is literally his last chance to get a significant win before he seriously has to start rethinking his plans for the second half of the year where he doesn’t have many chances to make up ground in the rankings. It’s literally make or break for his entire season at this point.
If he has another disaster in Miami, then I say he’ll have to consider taking personal leave from the tour to focus on sorting out his mental issues first and getting the right training program. Having to fight both high-level opponents from the get-go while also having personal demons to deal with means it seriously is time to get help from a mental coach. And after that, focus on rebuilding from scratch by dropping back to the Challenger level for possibly the rest of the season so he can work on himself against lower ranked opponents that are more suitable for his current level. If he feels he’s still not ready, keep playing Challengers in 2024 instead of the major tournaments until he gets fully confident in his game again.
It’s like how Andy Murray was stuck very low in the rankings for years after his hip surgery, and only started getting great results again last year, and even he played Challengers sometimes. It reminds me of that.
What a weird match.
Thiem still has a long way to go to be good. Maybe he'll find his form in time for the clay tournaments (obv he has far away from being one of the favorites there but still, at least he can be good again and win a couple of matches)
Good to see Mannarino still be good and be capable of playing well and win matches against solid players. I kinda expected this to be the year he'll start the last part of his career and start falling off the high rankings but alas, he seems to be playing as good as ever!
Props to him
I enjoyed watching this altough it was a very weird match
Standard gut wrenching L for Dominic. He didn't even play bad he showed a lot of his ability just in too many big spots he came up short and Mannarino didn't make errors. It's really just mental at this point
Sad to see, but Thiem plays like a school boy on a first date. He is a completely new player with no confidence whatsoever trying to simply return most of the balls into the court. Barely any wow shots, no depth, mostly slicing into mid-court.
I am not in his body of course, so I cannot tell whether his wrist physically prevents him from relying on his topspin backhand more. But still. If he is afraid of hurting his wrist he should either take a long-term break to recover further or just retire (no shame in that). - I am sure he can be earning more money by playing exhibition matches and doing other celebrity stuff. Thankfully he has made a name and by playing like this he only tarnishes it making himself less marketable in the long term.
But I do not think it is physical. I am 100% sure 99% of his problem is mental. I hope he is working with a phycologist.
IMO, what he needs to do is stop taking this wild cards and start playing Challengers. He needs to get some match wins, he needs to actually play matches where he is the favorite which would make him play from the position of power and take risks. In today's match he was not the favorite even though he was playing Mannarino.
C'mon Domi, get your shit together.
The way he was pampering that forehand (and spraying balls-so the power and accuracy are off), I think it's a combination of physical and mental. Likely mostly physical
Whenever I have watched him he plays so far behind the baseline that its hard to do anything but just get it back. He needs to be much closer to the baseline so he can at lease get it past people.
Thiem's conception of the game, his playing style was all centered around that power he was able to produce, forehand or backhand. It is around which every other crucial part of his style was connected, whether it be court coverage or his ability to create angles. With that central power gone, everything is powerless, it is without that consolidating force. That was the weakness of Dominic Thiem.
It is also impossible to contrast this for instance with any of the Big Three, who, whenever some injury had daunted them, was able to fall back on some kinds of backup plan. Djokovic won 2023 au open, without the powerful backhand or his sliding abilities. That is what distinguishes the geniuses of the game. They can adapt. Their survivability.
I am not saying all this to downplay Thiem or anything like that. An injury can take out anyone, and it's just a matter of nature and time. Del Potro and Andy Murray were no less geniuses than those three. What I am saying is, unfortunately, it is a lesson. In Tennis as a brutal game and in human perseverance.
Man, I miss Domi at his best! He used to be so aggressive, but the injury has shattered his confidence, he used to challenge and beat the big boys, but now he is a shadow of himself! This makes me sad.
Heartbreaking for Domi, though there are some huge improvements to be seen, especially on backhand and the serve.
the forehand is on the right track too, it’s all mental at this point. Domi’s one of most monstrous strengths was that heavy inside out forehand that used to blew Djokovic of the court. He doesn’t have any confidence whatsoever to hit that shot at all.
He just needs to wins under his belt and he’ll back.
people been saying every single match from him for months and months that there are huge improvements. If that were the case he wouldnt keep losing first round over and over.
As a huge Domi fan, I agree, especially when people keep saying "(his opponent) played lights out," no, his opponent was just playing tennis while Domi was self-destructing. Garin, Monteiro, Mannarino.....these are players Domi should be beating easily if he hopes to come back. I feel for him, but at the same time, what he's doing isn't working and he's showing no signs of changing that......get a second coach for a new perspective, hire a mental coach, play only challengers for a while, take an extended vacation..... try anything. I don't think taking WCs to Masters 1000s is helping at all.
I think more players should have a mental coach, Iga does and she is dominating WTA, and medvedev now does and he was finally able to beat top 10 players again and won 3 titles in a row
I don't think his forehand is on the right track. His serve and backhand haven't been a problem since he returned, but his forehand technique is. A lot of people say that it's his mentality, but I honestly don't think it is. You can't be confident in something that you don't have. In contrast to what people think, his mentality has to be strong to allow him to continue to try his best after all these losses. I would have given up already if I was him.
I know we want him to win, but can we be realistic and take the rose colored glasses off? He is NOT on the right track. Maybe he has the endurance to be in the ATP but there is a lot going on without improvement that have plateaued. The FH, even the back hand. That wrist has lost a lot.
Keep in mind that Adrian is not really a formidable opponent at this time.
Thiem had entered a slump before his injury, he's now pushing 30 and his biggest weapon is never coming back. It's becoming unrealistic to expect him to get out of a two years + slump at this point.
Honestly the biggest hurdle for Domi has to be the mental aspect. His level isn’t too terrible but he keeps putting himself in situations where he should be winning some points but then losing due to some unforced error. Unfortunately those start to pile up and he gets less confident about his game. U could clearly see it in the tiebreak where he should’ve put away the volley at 2-1 and then the 2 bad forehands to finish the match. His game is getting better but he first needs to work on his confidence and trusting his ability to win. I’m hoping he can pull it together this season because it’s rlly tough to watch at this point.
I get it that for many, there is no reason to believe that he can't come back and be relevant on the tour. Unfortunately, I don't think he will return to his pre 2020 form. I'm a fan of Thiem, but his window has closed for me. The US Open championship was his time to break through and maybe grab some more slams like Stan did, behind the big 3 and ahead of the new kids. Now he's been passed over by Alcaraz, Sinner, Medvedev, and Rune, and he's just not going to catch them, unfortunately.
It's crazy how much Thiem has dropped off after that injury. This is Hewitt post hip injury levels of dropoff. At least Hewitt could make it past to the 3rd round. This is Derrick Rose post ACL injury. I hope Thiem gets it all back together. Maybe it's just taking way longer than everybody else who gets an injury, but eventually it will all click again. Thiem is struggling against people (not Mannarino) who are borderline top 100
I think Thiem is in major decline. Forehand no longer a real weapon. The injury's lasting effects and loss of confidence is all too evident these days.
At least he got one grand slam, he deserved it. Sad to think what could have been, he was so good for like 2 years.
I agree, and it makes me so sad. As a keen amatuer, and 1HBH player, his is the most beautiful on the tour now that Fed is gone. I love watching in form Thiem. He's got all the raw ingredients to be a top 10 fixture, but I'm starting to think that the injury and fall in rankings has just broken him.
Hey, don’t forget my boys Stan and Gasquet are still active!
Gasquet with a sweet one-hander down the line to win his first round match
I feel like he desperately needs a win against top10 which might boost his confidence…
I don’t know why he’s not playing more aggressive like before
I don't think he is able to anymore with his damaged wrist. I don't see a reason otherwise, he doesn't hit with more power in practice either so it doesn't look like a confidence issue. However his backhand can still be a rocket because he use the other side of the wrist. So I guess the problem is purely physical.
I wonder if a racquet switch would help? Ive played with the pure strike and it was quite stiff and uncomfortable to play with. I know everyone has their own preference for racquets but maybe he should try a frame thats a bit more flexible.
I ordered one to try because Thiem and I both take big cuts at the ball. I hated it, it felt like playing with a piece of stiff wood.
thiems will be nothing like the one you ordered either
To be honest I have no idea, I don't no extend of his injury. As you said it is possible that a lighter frame could help ?
I don't think he is physically capable.
I definitely think it's mental and not physical, Murray recently also said that it looks like he is playing with a mental-wrist and knows how he's feeling because of his hip.
He seems to be in a tailspin that he is finding hard to get out of. Was really the heir apparent to Nadal on clay. Hoping that he does recover and adds a few Roland Garros crowns once the titans of the game inevitably start exiting. A certain Carlitos may have something to say about that. Hopefully the current generation can stay healthy. There is something about the racket take back that is unique and seemingly dangerous to my uneducated eye. Those biomechanics need to be studied by disciplines trained to analyze them.
A Thiem-Alcaraz RG final with both in top form would be god level
People are gonna say thiem was close to winning, but losing in any fashion to mannarino on a relatively slow court is terrible, yet reflective of his post-injury form as of late. As a thiem fan, I’m getting more than concerned at this point
He had won 16 sets in a row against Mannarino and as you said this is like the perfect HC for Thiem and a nightmare for Mannarino, who's also 34 and not at his peak anymore
A huge part of his struggle is mental, he even admitted that he has issues in that department. However, I don’t think he is looking for help actively. Understanding and admitting the issue is the first step, but he should really try and work with a mental coach. Trying to continue the same way as usual probably won’t lead anywhere.
100% agree. Of course, no one will know until it's all said and done, but I feel it's mental, not physical. Since he's been back, I haven't seen any sign that his wrist is impacting him. Also, many are forgetting that his performance woes actually began before his wrist injury.
Yes, it’s like when he realized that everything he ever worked for came true by winning the US Open. Winning a slam was everything he ever wanted and when it sank in before the 2021 season it seemed he lost his bite. Of course that’s speculation, but in his interviews it sounded as his motivation isn’t the same as it was before. And the injury didn’t help either as I think he’s afraid to hit as hard as he could. Understandably so.
I agree. You could see it in his face during the match. When he got broken in the second set with that double fault, it already felt over.
Applies to so many aspects of life, in general. Thank you for reminding me 🙏🏽
that was just tragic. Dom was this close 🤏🏼 to taking it, but he couldn't do it😭
Forehand just too error prone, those 2 in the net at the end of the tie break were just not good enough.
There were some moments were he certainly found his groove on forehand but then again the moments like disaster of finish to the second set and end of tiebreak where he brain farts. It’s just mental.
Not to be dramatic but for me it's like this, you can take either many positives or many negatives out of this match. Yet another tight match heartbreaker, couldn't be solid or confident enough to finish or pull through. Effects of the injury still evident, but he moved better here than I've arguably seen since the injury. And he played better than I've seen all year. He just didn't have the confidence to finish it off. He is improving though and it almost feels like he can't take another tight loss like this, this is the last punch, either it's the start for the end and a match like this shows it, or it shows he's still got good (improving) tennis to show but just needs the match wins and confidence to finish matches off. but I think Domi can take positives from this and I'm hoping that this is the start for better play from him and going into the clay he loves too, hopefully he can show up with this kind of form and just get some freaking matches under his belt. Personally don't think he's done or anything, hell of a player and the magic wins saving match points vs. wolf hurkacz paul last season has me still believing he's got some fight, some heart left in em and some good tennis to show. Just hopefully he can start ending up on the winning side a few more times, eh? cause I can't handle another Domi 7-6 in the third ngl. Regardless what happens, this one's gonna hurt for a little while. what a heartbreaker
He was 6-4 4-2 up 😭
6-4 4-1, that was when he started the collapse.
The worst part is, the wrist is everything. His entire forehand and even the bite on his backhand has turned to shit because of it. I suppose a lot of it is precautionary to ensure he doesn't permanently damage his wrist again, but it sucks so much to see one of the most devastating FH getting reduced to this error prone Topspin mess. As Andy showed, process takes a very long time to come back from, so I'll stay hopeful. Let's see what happens in the future. Personally I feel like his goal rn should be getting the wrist to pre injury levels. Atleast 90% of those levels before he can start thinking about seriously challenging on the tour. Or else go down a level and build some confidence. Even Andy played in challengers when he needed to.
This is exactly what I keep saying. He is clearly not at the level to compete with anyone in the top 100, and also because of an unusual rule, his reliance on receiving wildcards is actually hurting more than helping him because players who enter Slams and M1000s as wildcards actually cannot afford to lose R1 if they actually want to gain points. This rule meant not just this tournament, but also AO this year and USO last year, where his R1 losses as a wildcard caused those results on his ranking to be voided and actually resulted in being deducted 20 points for those void results. At this rate he is unlikely to make direct entry for RG, so unless he signs up for qualies instead of getting a wildcard, he’ll have yet another major tournament result that is voided and that he cannot replace without a deep 250 or 500 run. Miami is literally his last chance to get a significant win before he seriously has to start rethinking his plans for the second half of the year where he doesn’t have many chances to make up ground in the rankings. It’s literally make or break for his entire season at this point. If he has another disaster in Miami, then I say he’ll have to consider taking personal leave from the tour to focus on sorting out his mental issues first and getting the right training program. Having to fight both high-level opponents from the get-go while also having personal demons to deal with means it seriously is time to get help from a mental coach. And after that, focus on rebuilding from scratch by dropping back to the Challenger level for possibly the rest of the season so he can work on himself against lower ranked opponents that are more suitable for his current level. If he feels he’s still not ready, keep playing Challengers in 2024 instead of the major tournaments until he gets fully confident in his game again. It’s like how Andy Murray was stuck very low in the rankings for years after his hip surgery, and only started getting great results again last year, and even he played Challengers sometimes. It reminds me of that.
Everything hurts
What a weird match. Thiem still has a long way to go to be good. Maybe he'll find his form in time for the clay tournaments (obv he has far away from being one of the favorites there but still, at least he can be good again and win a couple of matches) Good to see Mannarino still be good and be capable of playing well and win matches against solid players. I kinda expected this to be the year he'll start the last part of his career and start falling off the high rankings but alas, he seems to be playing as good as ever! Props to him I enjoyed watching this altough it was a very weird match
Standard gut wrenching L for Dominic. He didn't even play bad he showed a lot of his ability just in too many big spots he came up short and Mannarino didn't make errors. It's really just mental at this point
Is it just me or does Dom just try to hit the ball so hard that it just hits the net ?
We all need a reminder of happier times… [Domi beating Djokovic in the 2019 RG semifinal](https://youtu.be/ih6ZJG1S600)
Sad to see, but Thiem plays like a school boy on a first date. He is a completely new player with no confidence whatsoever trying to simply return most of the balls into the court. Barely any wow shots, no depth, mostly slicing into mid-court. I am not in his body of course, so I cannot tell whether his wrist physically prevents him from relying on his topspin backhand more. But still. If he is afraid of hurting his wrist he should either take a long-term break to recover further or just retire (no shame in that). - I am sure he can be earning more money by playing exhibition matches and doing other celebrity stuff. Thankfully he has made a name and by playing like this he only tarnishes it making himself less marketable in the long term. But I do not think it is physical. I am 100% sure 99% of his problem is mental. I hope he is working with a phycologist. IMO, what he needs to do is stop taking this wild cards and start playing Challengers. He needs to get some match wins, he needs to actually play matches where he is the favorite which would make him play from the position of power and take risks. In today's match he was not the favorite even though he was playing Mannarino. C'mon Domi, get your shit together.
His old physio was talking about his physical decline (not wrist, muscles etc) somewhere. Of course he could just be salty that he was let go.
The way he was pampering that forehand (and spraying balls-so the power and accuracy are off), I think it's a combination of physical and mental. Likely mostly physical
Can someone get mannarino a shirt that’s a different color cos he has a pig pen vibe but i otherwise like watching him play.
Whenever I have watched him he plays so far behind the baseline that its hard to do anything but just get it back. He needs to be much closer to the baseline so he can at lease get it past people.
Thiem's conception of the game, his playing style was all centered around that power he was able to produce, forehand or backhand. It is around which every other crucial part of his style was connected, whether it be court coverage or his ability to create angles. With that central power gone, everything is powerless, it is without that consolidating force. That was the weakness of Dominic Thiem. It is also impossible to contrast this for instance with any of the Big Three, who, whenever some injury had daunted them, was able to fall back on some kinds of backup plan. Djokovic won 2023 au open, without the powerful backhand or his sliding abilities. That is what distinguishes the geniuses of the game. They can adapt. Their survivability. I am not saying all this to downplay Thiem or anything like that. An injury can take out anyone, and it's just a matter of nature and time. Del Potro and Andy Murray were no less geniuses than those three. What I am saying is, unfortunately, it is a lesson. In Tennis as a brutal game and in human perseverance.
It's so hard to root for Dominic
That ending was a heartbreaker 💔
Haha 😅 any minute now thiem will start winning again 😅 right guys???
Thiem comeback very soon!! 7-8 slam champ
Man so close yet so far for Thiem
Again, 2 casual forehands to lose the last 2 deciding points. So sad
So close, yet so far.
Man, I miss Domi at his best! He used to be so aggressive, but the injury has shattered his confidence, he used to challenge and beat the big boys, but now he is a shadow of himself! This makes me sad.
Pain
Ohhh Domi!!!!
Wrist injuries are no joke.
Happy for Mannarino, sad for Thiem. 🤷🏻♂️
Exactly my thoughts tbh
[удалено]
dimitrov is definitely doing significantly better
Now why is Grigor catching strays 😭
Dimitrov bageled Thiem in the last two complete* sets they played. Domi will be happy to transition to Dimitrov right now tbh.
Heartbreaking for Domi, though there are some huge improvements to be seen, especially on backhand and the serve. the forehand is on the right track too, it’s all mental at this point. Domi’s one of most monstrous strengths was that heavy inside out forehand that used to blew Djokovic of the court. He doesn’t have any confidence whatsoever to hit that shot at all. He just needs to wins under his belt and he’ll back.
people been saying every single match from him for months and months that there are huge improvements. If that were the case he wouldnt keep losing first round over and over.
As a huge Domi fan, I agree, especially when people keep saying "(his opponent) played lights out," no, his opponent was just playing tennis while Domi was self-destructing. Garin, Monteiro, Mannarino.....these are players Domi should be beating easily if he hopes to come back. I feel for him, but at the same time, what he's doing isn't working and he's showing no signs of changing that......get a second coach for a new perspective, hire a mental coach, play only challengers for a while, take an extended vacation..... try anything. I don't think taking WCs to Masters 1000s is helping at all.
I think more players should have a mental coach, Iga does and she is dominating WTA, and medvedev now does and he was finally able to beat top 10 players again and won 3 titles in a row
I don't think his forehand is on the right track. His serve and backhand haven't been a problem since he returned, but his forehand technique is. A lot of people say that it's his mentality, but I honestly don't think it is. You can't be confident in something that you don't have. In contrast to what people think, his mentality has to be strong to allow him to continue to try his best after all these losses. I would have given up already if I was him.
I know we want him to win, but can we be realistic and take the rose colored glasses off? He is NOT on the right track. Maybe he has the endurance to be in the ATP but there is a lot going on without improvement that have plateaued. The FH, even the back hand. That wrist has lost a lot. Keep in mind that Adrian is not really a formidable opponent at this time.
Thiem had entered a slump before his injury, he's now pushing 30 and his biggest weapon is never coming back. It's becoming unrealistic to expect him to get out of a two years + slump at this point.
Tiebreaks and Thiem 2023 season... name a worse duo
damn.
I genuinely think thiem will recover
Honestly the biggest hurdle for Domi has to be the mental aspect. His level isn’t too terrible but he keeps putting himself in situations where he should be winning some points but then losing due to some unforced error. Unfortunately those start to pile up and he gets less confident about his game. U could clearly see it in the tiebreak where he should’ve put away the volley at 2-1 and then the 2 bad forehands to finish the match. His game is getting better but he first needs to work on his confidence and trusting his ability to win. I’m hoping he can pull it together this season because it’s rlly tough to watch at this point.
he may never win a match again
If you like tennis, you would not say shit like that.
How tf
Good on a fellow bald!
I get it that for many, there is no reason to believe that he can't come back and be relevant on the tour. Unfortunately, I don't think he will return to his pre 2020 form. I'm a fan of Thiem, but his window has closed for me. The US Open championship was his time to break through and maybe grab some more slams like Stan did, behind the big 3 and ahead of the new kids. Now he's been passed over by Alcaraz, Sinner, Medvedev, and Rune, and he's just not going to catch them, unfortunately.
It's crazy how much Thiem has dropped off after that injury. This is Hewitt post hip injury levels of dropoff. At least Hewitt could make it past to the 3rd round. This is Derrick Rose post ACL injury. I hope Thiem gets it all back together. Maybe it's just taking way longer than everybody else who gets an injury, but eventually it will all click again. Thiem is struggling against people (not Mannarino) who are borderline top 100