Djokovic overcomes Thiem after wild first-set tiebreaker in London

Novak Djokovic got off to a winning start at the World Tour Finals, but not before he lost a brutal first set against Dominic Thiem in the opening match of Group B round-robin competition. Djokovic ended up prevailing 6-7(10), 6-0, 6-2 after two hours and two minutes.

Both players fought off a single break point en route to what developed into a wild first-set tiebreaker. Thiem threw in three double-faults, the first of which came with a 2-0 advantage in hand and the next two with set points at 6-3 and 6-4. The 23-year-old, who was making his debut at the year-end championship, also squandered set points at 6-5, 7-6, and 8-7, and 10-9. Djokovic earned his lone chance at 9-8, but Thiem thwarted it on his own serve after an extended rally. A forehand error by the world No. 2 put him in another hole at 10-11 and this time Thiem converted it with a huge forehand winner.

It was all downhill for the underdog, however, after that. Following a one-hour and nine-minute opener, the second set lasted a mere 23 minutes. Thiem at least managed to win two games in the third, but he committed 14 unforced errors in the final set compared to Djokovic’s four.

“Even though I lost the first set, I thought I didn’t do too many things wrong,” Djokovic commented. “It was just the very high quality of his game that prevailed in the first set. Yeah, (it was) a thrilling tiebreaker…. I had only one set point. He just played a good point. I was in the rally, but he just was going for his shots. In the end he managed to win that very long first set.

“I knew after that, the first opening couple games of the second set would be crucial for me to start with a break up, which I did. I felt more comfortable. I started swinging more freely in the second set; obviously made him play an extra shot. He started making more errors, which I used. I was on top of his second serves–putting a lot of pressure (on him). I thought I played very well in the second set especially, but the third, as well.”

“It was a very good and very intense first set,” Thiem reflected. “After that, I lost a little bit of energy–which is required against a guy like Novak to play close and good sets…. (At) the beginning of the third set, I was trying again to get [into the] match. He was playing well. I couldn’t quite keep the level up from the first set. That’s why I lost in three.

“The crowd was very nice. It was a really good atmosphere. I mean, 17,000 (people); it’s, I think, by far the biggest crowd I ever played (in front of). I think they are also excited to see some new faces at this tournament. That’s why they cheered a lot for me, I guess.”

Djokovic is now 4-0 lifetime against Thiem. This marks the first time he has ever dropped a set to the Austrian.

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