Rafael Nadal v Dominic Thiem: Australian Open quarter-final – live!

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First set: Nadal 2-2 Thiem* (* denotes server) Thiem holds to love again. Nadal still yet to land a blow on the Austrian’s serve.

Thiem has talked of his extra aggression on hard courts to win shorter points and he demonstrates that intent with a Djokovic-like point to move up 30-0, pushing Nadal one way then the other before scampering to the net to put away the backhand volley. That variety makes Thiem a much more dangerous proposition.

First set: Nadal* 2-1 Thiem (* denotes server) A 25-shot rally opens the third game of the night, both men working a variety of angles and spins before Thiem finds the net with a forehand down the line. Point three is even better, with scrambling defence on both sides of the net curtailed by Thiem pinging a forehand winner. Nadal eventually holds to 15 with some solid serving.

Jonas Canizares has emailed in about the courts. “AO has said goodbye to the rebound ace surface and started to use green set this year. I’m actually wondering why the courts are playing slow given that green set is also used by Basel, the Paris Masters, and the WTF, among others.” Sam Groth suggested yesterday it’s a consequence of the cooler conditions in Melbourne this tournament. We should see more pace over the next couple of days.

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Written by Jonathan Howcroft
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/live/2020/jan/29/rafael-nadal-v-dominic-thiem-australian-open-quarter-final-live under the title “Rafael Nadal v Dominic Thiem: Australian Open quarter-final – live!”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.