FILE PHOTO: Austria’s Dominic Thiem. REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol/File Photo
Former world number three Dominic Thiem won his first match in 14 months with victory at the Bastad Open on Tuesday as the Austrian looks to resurrect his career following a wrist injury that prevented him from defending his U.S. Open title last year.
Thiem had not won a match since a second round victory in Rome in May last year and was sidelined for nine months after inuring his wrist in Mallorca, falling to 339 in the rankings.
The 28-year-old, who had also entered second-tier Challenger tournaments in a bid to regain his form, snapped a 10-match losing streak on the Tour when he beat Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori 3-6 6-1 7-6(5) at the claycourt event in Bastad.
“It’s a long time. My last victory on the ATP Tour was in Rome in 2021, it feels like a different world somehow,” Thiem said in an on-court interview.
“Many, many things happened. It was tough, but it was also a very good experience I think, for life in general and for my tennis. I’m so happy that I got this first victory here today.”
Thiem will next play Spanish fourth seed Roberto Bautista Agut, who received a bye into the second round.