Dominic Thiem is only the second Austrian to win a Tennis Grand Slam title as he clinched the US Open in 2020 and this has resulted in more curiosity about his personality on and off the court.
Follow Us
Dominic Thiem’s life changed on September 6, 2020, in a big way. The Austrian Tennis star, who was destined to become a force in the sport ever since he turned professional almost a decade back, won the US Open in a thrilling manner. Down two sets to love, Dominic Thiem staged an epic comeback against Alexander Zverev to become the second Austrian to win a Grand Slam title. 25 years ago, when Dominic Thiem was just two years of age, Thomas Muster had won the French Open in 1995.
The US Open triumph resulted in Dominic Thiem getting a massive fan following on social media. The Austrian’s personal life, family background, brand endorsements, and net worth were intensely speculated. Standing at six foot one inch with an athletic physique, Dominic Thiem was like a breath of fresh air in the world of Tennis. Dominic Thiem’s girlfriend is currently Lili Paul-Roncalli, a circus artist and dancer. Previously, Thiem’s girlfriend was Kristina Mladenovic, who was a doubles player. Dominic Thiem’s net worth is approximately over USD 15 million while his career prize money is now over USD 28 million. The year 2019 proved to be the making of Dominic Thiem as he won five ATP titles. The major breakthrough that year was beating the legendary Roger Federer in Indian Wells for his first ATP 1000 title.
Thiem has a superior record against Federer, winning five out of their eight games. Against Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, he has lost nine out of 15 and seven out of 12 games respectively. However, he managed to beat all of them once in 2019 which cemented his reputation as one of the best in the business. Thiem, along with Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas are among the emerging group of players who will bring about a new wave of domination in 2022.
Read | Dominic Thiem: Bio, Career Ranking, Net Worth, Girlfriend, Age, Height, and Family
Thiem’s exploits in 2019 and 2021 have made him a household name not just in Austria but in the entire Tennis world. Here are some interesting facts about Dominic Thiem.
The year 2020 was a year unlike any in the Tennis world. The coronavirus pandemic saw Wimbledon getting canceled for the first time since World War 2. The French Open was pushed back to September-October, which meant that the US Open was the second Grand Slam of the year.
Dominic Thiem had a tough battle to the quarterfinals. He defeated India’s Sumit Nagal in straight sets but was stretched to four in the third round by former US Open winner Marin Cilic. After winning the first two sets, Thiem lost the third set but recovered to win the fourth set in grand style. After beating Felix Auger-Aliassime in the fourth round, Thiem stormed into the final by beating Alex de Minaur and Daniil Medvedev.
In the final, he squared off against Alexander Zverev. Federer and Nadal had skipped the event due to coronavirus fears. Novak Djokovic defaulted in the fourth round as he hit a line umpire. Thus, the US Open saw two youngsters who were destined to dominate the future. Zverev won the first two sets and looked to be good to clinch the title. In a spectacular turnaround, Dominic Thiem staged a great recovery. He won the next two sets 6-4, 6-3. The final set went into the tie-breaker and Thiem held his nerve to create history. Thiem won the title and he became the first individual in the history of the US Open to win from two sets down.
Dominic Thiem had a tough 2021. He reached the fourth round of the Australian Open and lost in the first round of the French Open. It looked like Dominic Thiem was not 100 percent fit. Later on, he made an announcement on his social media handles that he was going to miss the rest of 2021 after suffering a wrist injury. The injury was there since June 2021 and the decision was made to be ready for the 2022 season.
On Twitter, Thiem wrote, “It has been a tough decision to make but I know this is what I have to do. I have a long career ahead of me and it’s important not to take risks and rush back.”
Dominic Thiem was born in the town of Wiener Neustadt in Austria. The literal translation of the city in German means ‘New Vienna’. This city is located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria, in northeast Austria. It is a self-governed city and the seat of the district administration of Wiener Neustadt-Land District. The city is the site of one of the world’s oldest military academies, the Theresian Military Academy. This was established by Empress Maria Theresa of Austria in 1752 to train officers for the Austrian army.
Hailing from Austria and having been on the international circuit for a decade, Dominic Thiem is fluent in English and German. But, in his previous relationship with Kristina Mladenovic, he gained fluency in French as well. Thus, Dominic Thiem knows three languages and they are English, French, and German.
Read | Who is Dominic Thiem’s Girlfriend Lili Paul-Roncalli?
Dominic Thiem’s family comes from a Tennis background, with both father and mother being Tennis coaches. His father began working as a coach at Günter Bresnik’s academy in Vienna in 1997 when Thiem was just three years old. Bresnik became Thiem’s coach formally from age nine. In his junior years, right up to his formative years as a professional, Gunter Bresnik was Thiem’s coach. From 2002 till 2019, Bresnik played a vital role in the development of Dominic Thiem. After an association of 17 years, Nicolas Massu became his coach in 2020. Massu, a former top player from Chile, gave Thiem glory when he helped him win the US Open in 2020.
Dominic Thiem’s father is Wolfgang Thiem and he has been working as a Tennis coach. Incidentally, Dominic’s mother Karin also worked as a Tennis coach. His elder brother, Moritz was also a Tennis player.
Dominic Thiem became a professional in 2011. The Austrian made his ATP main draw debut after he received wild cards to the main draw of Kitzbuhel, Bangkok, and Vienna. In Vienna, Thiem recorded his first ATP win over compatriot Thomas Muster, a former world No. 1 who had come back from retirement in 2010 after an 11-year break. Thiem made his first ATP final in 2014 and secured three titles in 2015.
Dominic Thiem’s manager is Herwig Straka. The manager is a law and business graduate. Straka is also serving as the tournament director of the Vienna Open and is linked with the ATP. Apart from having an agent, Thiem is also managed by a Sports Management company. Thiem was one of the first major signings for Kosmos sports management agency. This company is run by football legend Gerard Pique. With his signing in Kosmos, Galo Blanco became Thiem’s agent
Blanco has been associated with Dominic Thiem for a long time and is close to the family. In an interview with Tennisnow.com, Blanco stated that he had the opportunity to work with Thiem throughout 2018. There has always been a very good relationship. Blanco left his position as competition director of Kosmos Tennis to dedicate himself to the new project.
Dominic Thiem has a height of six foot one inch and his weight is 79 kgs.
Dominic Thiem had a relationship with Kristina Mladenovic for close to four years. Ever since he started making big waves in the Tennis world, he was closely associated with Mladenovic. But, the couple split in 2019. Since then, Thiem has been in a relationship with Lil Paul-Roncalli, a dancer and performer. Lili Paul-Roncalli is 33 years of age and is much older than Thiem.
Thiem went up to as high as world number 2 following his win in the US Open. But, in 2021, his wrist injury meant that he slid down the pecking order. Currently, he is ranked 14 in the world, having not won any other titles ever since his US Open triumph in 2020.
