Dominic Thiem sounds like he absolutely won’t miss constantly traveling around the world as the 31-year-old described tennis as “one of the loneliest sports.”
On October 21st, the ATP 500 tournament in Vienna is taking place. That will be the place where the 2020 US Open champion and four-time Grand Slam finalist will end his career.
After picking up that very unfortunate wrist injury in mid-2021, Thiem never managed to regain his old level or even come anywhere close to rediscovering it. And after years of struggling, he decided to end his tennis journey at the age of 31 after 13 years on the Tour.
“I’ve traveled enough. But I believe that I can help from Austria. Tennis is one of the loneliest sports there is,” the former world No. 3 told Heute.
Dominic Thiem© Dominic Thiem/Instagram – Fair Use
Thiem reflects on the last couple of months, hints at his future plans
The current world No. 275 had a very rough start to the year, which included some disappointing defeats on the Challenger level. In May, the Austrian came to terms that was it time for him to retire.
Since then, Thiem has gone 0-5 but at least he got a chance to make one final appearance at the French Open and US Open.
“The last few months have been a rollercoaster ride. But I won’t really be able to move on until a foggy day in November,” the 31-year-old said.
During his prime, the 2020 US Open champion was one of the biggest and most popular athletes in Austria. When it comes to his achievements, it will never be forgotten that he competed in the Big Three era and managed to win a Grand Slam.
Now, his plans for the future include playing exhibitions and helping the next generation of promising Austrians.
“Maybe I’ll play an exhibition or two. For me, it’s a huge goal to increase the chances of young players taking the same path as me. My path was sensational – both in sporting terms and personally,” the two-time French Open runner-up said.