Roger Federer sends heartwarming message to Dominic Thiem on his retirement: "You always found a way to beat me"
Roger Federer wrote a heartfelt message for Dominic Thiem after the latter's career ended at the 2024 Austrian Open. Thiem bowed out of the ATP 500 tournament in the opening round on October 22.
Dominic Thiem announced in May that he would end his career at his home tournament in Vienna after persistent struggles with injury, which began in 2021, and a subsequent loss of form. He faced World No. 42 Luciano Darderi in the first round of the 2024 Austrian Open and dazzled the crowd with his signature one-handed backhands and impressive groundstrokes.
Thiem lost the close first set via a tiebreaker, and Darderi switched gears in the second set to win the match 7-6 (6), 6-2. After finishing the last match of his professional career, the former World No. 3 received a standing ovation and raucous applause from fans in the indoor stadium.
Farewell messages for Thiem from his rivals and fans started flooding social media soon after the match, and Swiss legend Roger Federer penned an emotional tribute to the Austrian on Instagram. Federer congratulated Thiem and acknowledged his prowess on all surfaces and his ability to use his ferocious backhands to down any opponent.
"An illustrious career comes to a close, Congratulations Domi. No matter the surface, you always found a way to beat me with your thunderous backhands But more importantly, you did it with grace and sportsmanship," Roger Federer wrote on Instagram.
Roger Federer, alongside Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, also paid tribute to Dominic Thiem's career when he received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2024 Lotterien Sporthilife-Gala in early October. The Big 3 recorded their message for Thiem in which Federer stated,
"Tennis will miss you very, very much.”
Dominic Thiem defeated Roger Federer five times in his career
Dominic Thiem is one of the rare players from his generation, having defeated Roger Federer on multiple occasions on all three surfaces. Federer won the first meeting at the 2016 Brisbane Open, with Thiem emerging victorious in the next two matches at the Italian Open and Stuttgart Open in the same year.
Federer's victory over Thiem in the group stages of the 2018 ATP Finals was his last in the series. The Austrian won the next three contests (Indian Wells Masters, Madrid Open, and ATP Finals in 2019) and ended his career with a 5-2 head-to-head lead against the 20-time Grand Slam champion.
Moreover, Dominic Thiem is only the second player after Andy Murray to notch five wins over each of the Big 3. The 31-year-old holds a 10-6 record against Rafael Nadal and a 7-5 record against Novak Djokovic.