Dominic Thiem has struggled a lot because of his wrist injury, and he doesn't want to risk re-injuring himself again.
After years of trying, the Austrian finally won his maiden Grand Slam title in 2020 at the US Open, but what followed after that wasn't another challenge for a major, but rather a disappointing slide down the ATP Rankings because of an injury.
Thiem was forced to miss a lot of tennis action, and while that happened to many players before them, his struggles are different. For three seasons now, the 30-year-old struggles to get back to at least the Top 50, and his body is not helping him.
Only recently, he lost to two players who were ranked outside of the Top 200, and after the losses, he admitted that his wrist started bothering him again, as a result of which, he cut down on his practice.
Still, he signed up for the 2024 Estoril Open, and he did well in the opening round, beating Maximilian Marterer in three sets to set up a second-round clash with lucky loser Richard Gasquet. After the match, Thiem was clearly happy with the result.
"It was good. Also, the past two years I played here, I like the conditions. I came here early to prepare for the tournament and it paid off. It was a great match, a great first set. Second set, Max started to play way better and it became a very open match, a great battle. I’m really happy that it went my way in the end."
Still, he's aware of his health struggles, and as a result, he admitted that he cut down on the intensity of his practice to avoid further complicating his life with injuries.
"[I’m going] to listen a bit to my body. To really take care that there is nothing coming up, no problems for the wrist. I cut down the intensity of my practice a little bit, but I’ve had enough practice in my life. I can handle it if it’s a little bit less."
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