Mercedes Cup: Dominic Thiem ousts Roger Federer to reach first grasscourt final
22-year-old Dominic Thiem simply can’t stop winning! The Austrian, who is currently at a career-high ranking of No. 7, continues to make an impressive transition from clay to grass. And he showed his improved skills on the fast surface at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart on Saturday as he claimed his young career’s biggest win on grass by ousting the seven-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-4.
The result earned him an incredible 44th victory of the season and a place in his first ever final on the lush lawns.
It certainly wasn’t an easy task against the Swiss maestro on his best surface. The third seed had to take the hard route, saving two match points in the second-set tie-break before he could complete the win in 1 hour 57 minutes.
This was his second consecutive win over the 17-time Grand Slam champion after having beaten him in the third round of the Rome Masters in May. For the top-seeded Federer, this was his first tournament since a back injury forced him out of the French Open.
Thiem was understandably over the moon after this big triumph and called it a dream.
“I can’t believe it. To beat Federer on grass is a dream,” said the Roland Garros semi-finalist.
“You need a little bit of luck to beat him on his best surface. I’m the happiest person on the Earth now.”
Kohlschreiber ends Del Potro’s run
Thiem will now meet the seventh seed and German No. 1 Philipp Kohlschreiber in the final on Sunday. The 32-year-old finished a rain-delayed semi-final with a 6-3, 6-4 win over former champion Juan Martin del Potro.
This will be their second meeting this year after a riveting three-set summit clash at Munich went the German’s way on clay in May.