Dominic
Thiem
Austria
·
Tennis
Date of birth | 3 September 1993 |
|---|---|
Place of birth | Lichtenwörth, Austria |
Age | 32 |
Nationality | Austria |
Career start | 2011 |
Disciplines | Tennis Singles / Tennis Doubles |
A four-time Grand Slam finalist, the US Open champion in 2020 and a winner of 17 ATP Tour titles, Austria's Dominic Thiem enjoyed a memorable tennis career before a string of injuries led to him calling time on his professional career at the age of just 31.
Thiem's remarkable journey began at the age of 18 when he was awarded a wildcard for the Generali Open in Kitzbühel, Austria, in 2011. Coming from a family of tennis players – his parents are tennis coaches and his brother also plays – it’s no surprise that he chose to pursue a career in tennis, despite also loving football and skiing.
Thiem's first match win at main level came in 2011 on the ATP World Tour in a match against countryman Thomas Muster at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna and the wins kept coming. He won four ITF Futures tournaments in 2012, stepping up to a level to land three Challenger titles in 2013. Then in 2014 he ranked in the top 100 of the ATP world singles. That same year he made the second and third rounds at Masters 1000 events at Indian Wells, Miami, Barcelona and Madrid, where he also enjoyed his first win against a top-10 player, the number three-ranked Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland.
Early ATP success
In 2015, Thiem won his first title on the ATP World Tour, while in 2016 he entered the world's top 10 for the first time after making the French Open semi-finals. He followed that up by winning the Stuttgart title, making him the first Austrian to win a title on grass at a tour-level tournament.
The 2017 season saw Thiem win his second ATP 500 title in Rio de Janeiro and reach his first Masters 1000 final (in Madrid), and by the end of that campaign he'd achieved a career-high ranking of number four in the world.
In 2018 he won his 11th ATP Open title at St Petersburg, made the Madrid final again and secured another breakthrough when he reached his first Grand Slam final (at the French Open), ending the season with another appearance at the World Tour Finals and ending the year inside the world's top 10 again.
His 2019 season saw Thiem land his biggest title to date when he defeated Roger Federer in the final of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. He followed that up with another French Open final in June where he was beaten in the title match by Rafael Nadal again.
In July of the 2019 season Thiem achieved a lifetime ambition by becoming the first Austrian since the legendary Thomas Muster in 1993 to win the title in Kitzbühel.
"It's already one of my most beautiful moments ever in my tennis career – I reached one big childhood goal today," he revealed after defeating Albert Ramos in the final.
He completed another childhood goal in October, when he won the second Austrian ATP Tour event, Vienna's Erste Bank Open, to secure both home tournament titles in the same season – something that even Muster failed to do (Muster lost in three Vienna finals, never winning the title).
And Thiem rounded off a hugely impressive 2019 campaign, with some great results on faster surfaces that he had previously struggled on – indoor and outdoor hard courts.
A Grand Slam champion
In February 2020 Thiem again made a major final, this time on hard courts at the Australian Open in Melbourne, losing out in a thrilling five-setter to Novak Djokovic. Then, in September 2020, Thiem won his first Grand Slam title in dramatic fashion after fighting back from two sets down to beat Germany's Alexander Zverev at the US Open in New York City.
"I dedicated basically my whole life until this point to win one of the four majors," said Thiem after securing his US Open title "Now I did it – that's also for myself a great accomplishment." Thiem then rounded off the season by finishing as the runner-up at the ATP Tour Finals.
Injuries take their toll
Injuries put paid to the majority of Thiem's 2021 season and he saw his ranking suffer as he fell outside of the top 300. However, he made his return in 2022 and began to challenge for titles once again.
In 2023, he reached his first tour-level final in three years at home in Kitzbühel, Austria. The following year, at the Vienna Open, Thiem announced his retirement from professional tennis.
"It’s been an amazing journey, full of ups and downs, and I’m grateful for every experience," Thiem explained on his social media. "A special thank you to my family, coaches, friends, and partners! And of course, to you, tennis, for giving me more than I ever dreamed of."
Even after retirement, Dominic Thiem is still involved in tennis
© Mirja Geh/Red Bull Content Pool
Taking a moment to relax at Red Bull Thiem Set Match
© Alexander Papis/Red Bull Content Pool
Taking part in the Wings for Life World Run in Vienna
© Philipp Carl Riedl for Wings for Life World Run
Dominic Thiem was a regular winner on the ATP Tour throughout his career
© Mirja Geh/Red Bull Content Pool