Thiem saves 3 match points to beat highest-ranked player since his injury
ATP
It seems that the European Open in Antwerp is a great event for players who are coming back from an injury, as Dominic Thiem reached the semi-finals after one of the best victories after his struggles.
In 2019, the former ATP World No. 1, Andy Murray, triumphed in Antwerp to lift his only ATP trophy after his injury. Now, the 2020 US Open champion, Dominic Thiem has a very big chance to do the same thing as he advanced already to the semi-finals of the 2022 European Open.
In the first two rounds, the Austrian defeated home player Michael Geerts, and Francisco Cerundolo, but in the quarter-finals, he faced the top-seeded player in Antwerp, World No. 11 Hubert Hurkacz.
The Pole started much better when he got an early break, and thanks to his superb serve and seven aces in the first set, he easily won 6-3 after just 39 minutes, and it seemed that he would win against Thiem for the second time in a month.
The two met one month ago in Metz, and back then, it was a 6-3, 6-4 victory for Hurkacz. However, this time, Thiem showed the enormous progress that he's made in those 30 days and forced a tie-break in the second set.
Despite facing a total of three match points, the Austrian stayed calm under pressure to convert his third set point and win the tie-break 11-9 to force a decider in Antwerp.
Both players had one break point in the third set, but none of them could use their chance, so a tie-break had to decide once again.
This time, Thiem allowed no drama as he sprinted towards a quick 6-2 lead and once again converted his third opportunity to win a tie-break and, this time, also the match.
The Austrian won 3-6, 7-6(9), 7-6(4) to reach the 2022 European Open semi-finals and also beat the highest-ranked player in the ATP Rankings since coming back from an injury. He will play against Sebastian Korda in the semi-finals, and if he wins, he will break into the Top 100 on Monday.
