Dominic Thiem says he couldn’t have chosen a better place than the US Open to record his first Grand Slam win in over two years.
The 2020 champion was in impressive form as he eased his way to a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, win over 25th seed Alexander Bublik in what was his first Tour-level hardcourt match since March. Thiem produced 26 winners during his latest victory and capitalized on his opponent’s costly unforced error count of 44.
“It was amazing. This place is pretty special. I haven’t won a Grand Slam match since Australia 2021 so that is a very long time,” Thiem said during his on-court interview.
“I couldn’t have wished for a better place (to get the win) with all of my memories and past experiences here. Some of them are good and some are rough. I’m super, super happy.”
Monday’s victory in New York has been a long time coming for the 27-year-old who missed 10 months of the Tour between 2021-2022 due to a wrist injury. Since his return to competitive tennis, Thiem has enjoyed a roller-coaster journey on the Tour with mixed results. Coming into this week, he has won 13 out of 31 matches contested so far this year on the ATP Tour.
“That was my first major injury on my wrist which is very important for my game. It took its time to recover and it took time for me to get confidence back in my wrist,” he explained.
“For 10 months I was out of the tour. All of the players improved and I wasn’t able to practice. It means a lot to me that my first grand slam victory after my injury happened at the US Open.“
Thiem credits the rise in his form to his run in Kitzbuhel earlier this month where he reached his first ATP final for three years. At the event, which was on clay, he beat three to 100 players before losing to Argentina’s Sebastian Baez.
“That was very good for my confidence,” he commented. “Since then, I feel that my game is coming into place.’
“Today I played a very good opponent who has had a great season and was seeded. I couldn’t be happier with a straight-sets victory.”
Awaiting the former champion in the second round will be home favorite Ben Shelton who overcame an early scare against Pedro Cachin. The American battled to a 1-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, win.
Thiem is one of six players in this year’s men’s draw who have previously won the US Open. The others are Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev.
