Erste Bank Open ticker

Dominic Thiem against Luciano Darderi LIVE today

Dominic Thiem is up against Luciano Darderi (r.) in Vienna today.

(Bild: GEPA pictures, APA/AFP/Filippo MONTEFORTE)

Dominic Thiem will face Luciano Darderi (ITA) in his last match on the ATP Tour at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna. The match is scheduled as the 3rd match after 2 pm (not before 6 pm) on the Center Court. We will report live, see ticker below.

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The 31-year-old former US Open winner will end his career after the ATP 500 tournament. Thiem's chances of winning the first round are very slim. Darderi is number 44 in the world, Thiem has never played against the 22-year-old Italian and this year's Cordoba winner.

Luciano Darderi

(Bild: APA/AFP/Filippo MONTEFORTE)

On Sunday evening, Thiem was given a grand farewell party at the Wiener Stadthalle. In front of 5,000 spectators with many prominent guests such as Boris Becker, Stefan Kraft, Tommy Haas, Nicolas Massu and Gregor Schlierenzauer, the Lower Austrian first played an exhibition set against the 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.

Alexander Zverev

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

Zverev on Thiem: "A goodbye and not a bye"
"It's a bit strange, but I've had long enough to prepare for it," said Thiem beforehand about his now very imminent final farewell. Thiem was particularly thankful that his tour friend Zverev had taken the time the day before his first tournament match (against Joel Schwärzler). Zverev was very happy 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 and expressed what many a Thiem fan is thinking: "I hope he gets bored in a year or two and comes back to the tour again."

Dominic Thiem

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

The tribute followed with a video review of Thiem's career and 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 the shower of confetti. 

Dominic Thiem

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

"It hurts incredibly ..."
"It's been an incredible journey, the most important thing has been you, opponents and friends, and it's always been a pleasure to be 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."