Thiem deserves his new elite status

Austrian Dominic Thiem entered last week’s Mercedes Cup tournament as the newest member of the world’s top 10 – but with only two grass court career wins to his name.

Yet the world No.7 clinched the grass court title in a rain-interrupted final against German Philipp Kohlschreiber, who thrives playing in front of his home fans. Thiem even admitted his 6-7(2) 6-4 6-4 victory was surprising.

“It feels absolutely unreal because I came here without any expectations basically, and I’m pretty sure that it’s the most special title for me,” Thiem told the ATP World Tour website.

“I didn’t play that well on grass over the past two years, and this tournament was so strong. I’m the winner here, I really cannot believe it.”

Thiem’s rise into the game’s top 10 was emphatically stated with a semifinal run at Roland Garros and further reiterated with a semifinal win over world No.3 Roger Federer in Stuttgart.

Just how good is Thiem? Let’s look at some of the stats from his incredible run:

• So far in 2016, he has won four ATP World Tour titles and boasts a tour-leading 45-11 win-loss record.
• He thrives under pressure – his deciding set record for the season is 19-1, a winning percent of 95.
• Thiem’s 2016 titles have been won on clay, hard and grass – making him only the 29th player in the Open Era to win three titles on three different surfaces in the same year.
• Only nine active players have won three titles on three different surfaces in the same year and in the past five years, the only active players to do so are David Ferrer, Grigor Dimitrov, Andy Murray, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
• In the past 55 weeks Thiem has won seven ATP World Tour titles. During this same period, Federer and Murray have three apiece.

So is Thiem the real deal?

The case for is very compelling. Let’s not forget he is only 22 and by far the youngest member of the world’s top 15. While Thiem’s loss to world No.1 Novak Djokovic in Paris was comprehensive, there is no denying Thiem deserves his new-found place among the game’s elite.