The kangaroo tattoo on Karin Thiem’s skin still has to wait. The Lichtenwörtherin can be stung for every tournament victory of her son Dominic. The tattoo artist was allowed to have his instruments ready on Sunday – until after four hours of fighting Novak Djokovic had the upper hand in his Australian living room. The Serbian superstar pays respect to the 26-year-old from Lower Austria: “Dominic still has a lot of time ahead of him, will win more than a Grand Slam tournament.”
Alexander Antonitsch is also convinced of this. The former ATP professional with Lower Austria connections agrees with the “Djoker”: “It is only a matter of time before Dominic wins his first Grand Slam tournament. The experts agree. ”In his third major final, Thiem was closer to victory than ever before. “I can not reproach myself very much,” says the fourth in the world rankings (Roger Federer is now only third out of 85 in the ATP ranking) after the five-set loss. With 4: 6, 6: 4,6: 2,3: 6 and 4: 6 Thiem had to bend. For Novak Djokovic it was the eighth triumph at the Australian Open.
“Dominic has a lot ahead of him and will win more than a Grand Slam tournament.” Melbourne winner Novak Djokovic on Thiem
The stubborn return of the veteran was probably the crux of the matter. “Djokovic brought back a tremendous amount of quality in sets four and five. You notice that as a server, you take even more risks, ”analyzes Antonitsch. “The bottom line is that Dominic made a few mistakes too many.” The Serb made 62 points with his setbacks, Thiems Returns brought in 39 points.
“Nonetheless, it was great what Dominic did in these two weeks,” enthuses Antonitsch. From the vortex surrounding the premature end line behind Thomas Muster’s commitment, “nobody is talking today”.
The Lower Austrian was “very close” on Sunday, the 53-year-old believes. Thiem also sees it this way: “If I had used this one breakball in the fourth set, I would be sitting here as the winner.” But in the fifth set Djokovic closed the sack in the style of a champion. “His enormous routine, the experience of 17 Grand Slam titles certainly plays a role,” says Antonitsch. And: Thiem was on the court six hours longer during the tournament. Nevertheless, he presented himself in perfect shape: “Dominic still had chances in the fifth round.”
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