Dominic Thiem looks back at French Open 2019 loss to Rafael Nadal, says he felt he was at the "top" of his game despite unflattering scoreline
Dominic Thiem and Rafael Nadal have played plenty of memorable matches against each other. The duo have come face-to-face 15 times on tour and the Austrian has proved to be a significant challenge for Nadal, with six wins under his belt.
Of their 15 meetings, six have been at Grand Slams, and the Spaniard has managed to beat Thiem in five of them.
In a recent interview with Eurosport, Dominic Thiem opened up about Nadal's dominance at the French Open, where they have clashed four times - including back-to-back finals in 2018 and 2019. Thiem confessed that his 2019 runner-up finish stung more than any other defeat to the 14-time Roland Garros champion.
“One time was very – was not nice for me - the finals of 2019,” Dominic Thiem said.
The 29-year-old, who has been struggling with confidence lately, remarked that he was in the form of his life that year. Thiem believed he could snatch the title from Rafael Nadal given that he had beaten him just weeks prior in the tournament he eventually won – the 2019 Barcelona Open.
“I was going into the match with the belief to win, honestly. I was basically on the top of my game I was physically in a great shape. I had beaten him in Barcelona some weeks before – quite solid,” he recalled.
Thiem had a glorious run up to the 2019 final, which he reached by defeating Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. The 2020 US Open champion confessed that he was desperate to win the Clay Slam that year, but things didn’t go his way.
“Coming from beating Novak (Djokovic) in the semis and playing really, really well, and he just raised his level and it was – I was desperate – I really have to say that,” Thiem admitted. “First two sets I still could hold it, somehow that goes 3-6, 7-5 and then set three, and four, 1-6, 1-6."
"Almost impossible to beat him there" – Dominic Thiem on Rafael Nadal's French Open dominance
Dominic Thiem used his brutal loss to emphasize Rafael Nadal’s dominance at Roland Garros, which, according to the former World No. 3, is likely to be “a record for eternity.”
“It was definitely one of my best clay court matches I have played, and then still going down pretty easy in four sets. Yeah that’s exactly how tough it is to play him there,” Thiem said. “You just have to look at the stats – 14 titles there. It’s probably a record for eternity and almost impossible to beat him there.”
Nadal has an almost flawless record at the Claycourt Slam, with 14 of his 22 Grand Slam titles coming there. He has scored a staggering 112 wins at the event and suffered a mere three losses.