Dominic Thiem overcame rival Alexander Zverev to set up the Australian Open summit clash against Novak Djokovic
Australian Open finalist Dominic Thiem admitted it was not easy to recover after his game against Nadal in the quarterfinal following his victory over Alexander Zverev in the semi-final on Friday.
Austrian Thiem defeated German Zverev 3-6, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6 in a tight encounter at the Rod Laver Arena to set up his first ever Australian Open final appearance.
Thiem was speaking to TV broadcaster and legend of the game John McEnroe after his match with Zverev when the latter asked him if he had felt any effects after his gruelling match against Rafael Nadal in the semi-final.
In reply, Thiem opened up saying that it was not easy after playing four hours against Rafa and that the recovery was hard before his match against Zverev.
“Yeah, it was not easy. I was playing four hours straight against Rafa, who is the most intense guy on the tour. Almost every rally was so intense and long,” he said.
He later said that the match against Nadal was so tiring that he had to get back to sleep at 5 am in the morning but was ready for the challenge against Zverev as soon as the adrenaline kicked in.
“So, I was in bed at around 5 two days ago. Of course, it was not easy to recover but once all the adrenaline came, I mean when I walked in into the full stadium it was fine actually but still, I had some troubles in the first set.
“I think we both were nervous, we started with two breaks. Both our semi-finals here. So that was not easy and was a tough start for me,” Thiem gave his view on his poor start.
Zverev backs Thiem to upset Djokovic
Meanwhile, Zverev, who crashed out of the Australian Open, backed his friend and on-court rival Thiem to upset the experienced Novak Djokovic when the two met at the summit clash.
“It’s more difficult. But I think he has a chance,” Zverev said of Thiem.
“He’s playing the best tennis of his life,” Zverev said during a post-match press conference after his loss to Thiem. “Yeah, I do believe that he has a chance. I do believe he’s playing good enough. I wish him nothing but the best.”
Thiem does have a slight advantage over Djokovic, having won his last two meetings with the Serbian.
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However, Djokovic has a lot of experience in finals, and that could count for a lot on Sunday.
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