"Incredible journey"
Party in Vienna: Thiem says an emotional farewell
Dominic Thiem had a big farewell party at the Wiener Stadthalle on Sunday evening. In front of 5,000 spectators with many prominent guests such as Boris Becker, Stefan Kraft, Tommy Haas, Nicolas Massu and Gregor Schlierenzauer, the former US Open winner first played an exhibition set against German top star Alexander Zverev, which Thiem duly won 6:3 to mark the occasion.
The short match had also been scheduled in memory of his greatest success, the 2020 US Open triumph in New York. Thiem had won against the German despite trailing 0:2 in sets, but was never to celebrate another tournament victory after that.
"It's a bit strange, but I've had long enough to prepare for it," said Thiem beforehand, commenting on his imminent final farewell. Thiem was particularly grateful that his tour friend Zverev had taken the time the day before his first tournament match (against Joel Schwärzler).
Zverev: "Losing a friend"
Zverev was delighted to take part in the farewell. "First and foremost, I'm losing a friend on the tour, but of course we also played the greatest matches together. But it's goodbye, not goodbye," said the German, expressing what many a Thiem fan is thinking: "I hope he gets bored in a year or two and comes back to the tour again."
Even though the 31-year-old from Lower Austria will probably play for the last time on Tuesday evening, there was plenty of time for Thiem's farewell outside the ATP 500 tournament on Sunday evening. Becker, Haas, Frances Tiafoe, Massu, Schlierenzauer and Co. were also seen on Center Court in a one-shot cup, where only one point was played at a time. Jack Draper took the win.
This was followed by the tribute with a video review of his career and recordings of congratulations from Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Tournament boss Herwig Straka presented Thiem with a special trophy and the celebrated player was once again made to feel like a tournament winner in a shower of confetti.
"An incredible journey"
"It was an incredible journey, the most important ones were you, opponents and friends and it was always a pleasure with you. It means so much to me that you were there today," said Thiem to the tennis players. "I couldn't have imagined a better last Sunday in Vienna. I hope to see many of you again on Tuesday," said Thiem to the audience. "It hurts incredibly that the journey is over, but it was a wonderful time."
A dinner with friends and companions concluded Thiem's evening. There wasn't much room for melancholy that evening. "Nothing is coming to an end today, but when it comes to Tuesday, there will of course be a lot of melancholy," he said.
ÖTV Sports Director Jürgen Melzer regretted the retirement in an ORF interview. "Tennis Austria is losing an absolute icon who has upheld the sport of tennis for almost a decade. He simply had the chance to win every tournament he played."
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