Rafael Nadal and to a lesser extent Novak Djokovic were already expected to reach the final of the Monte-Carlo Masters. With Dominic Thiem’s third-round exit, the chances of Nadal vs. Djokovic on championship Sunday only increase.
Thiem, the 2018 French Open runner-up who also triumphed in Indian Wells last month even though clay is his best surface, suffered a 6-3, 6-3 upset loss at the hands of Dusan Lajovic on Thursday afternoon.
“I’m very happy today,” Lajovic commented. “I didn’t expect this, especially not in two sets against a player like Dominic. This was for sure my best match in my life, I think. I produced some great tennis from the beginning until the end of the match and I’m very happy to be in the quarterfinals.
“It was very windy today and it was not easy to hit the ball cleanly. I had more success there and I was moving the ball through the court very well, I was able to dominate with my forehand today, and this was the key in the match.”
The unseeded Serb will go up against qualifier Lorenzo Sonego in a surprising quarterfinal clash.
Meanwhile, Nadal took disposed of Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-1 and Djokovic cruised past Taylor Fritz 6-3, 6-0. Friday’s quarterfinals will pit Nadal against Guido Pella and Djokovic against Daniil Medvedev.
“I felt good,” Nadal concluded. “I think that the first set was a high-quality set of tennis. (In) the second set (there) were a little bit more mistakes and the wind was even (greater) later in the match. The wind is for both of us, and of course always have an impact. That’s what happen when you play outdoors. These things are part of the game and just try to be ready for it…. You have to adapt. You have to find solutions.”
[polldaddy poll=10298446]
[polldaddy poll=10298442]
ouch, Thiem
And this Year of Upsets continues…do you think the wind affected Thiem’s shots? I know he has big swings and tends to stand back. So does Rafa but Rafa has excellent footwork and does move forward.
Rafa, losing 5-7 games
Looking at the Who Will Win sidebar poll, every named candidate except Rafa and Djoko are gone!
Djokovic in 3
Yeah, the wind affected him imo. Also the court is really slow compared to Madrid, Rome and RG. Thiem’s best surface is a medium-slow court, not the slow courts.
3 or 4 games for Pella.
Medvedev closes the door.