Mubadala Tennis Championship - 'At the moment it is only 80%' - Dominic Thiem reveals why he is 'not ready' to return

Published 15/12/2021 at 17:15 GMT

Thiem had been set to make his come back from injury in Abu Dhabi, but withdrew at short notice having not quite recovered full fitness. The Austrian remains confident he will be in fighting shape for the Australian Open, which begins in late January 2022, and admitited that he will play at the first Grand Slam of the year even if he is not able to play competitively beforehand.

Dominic Thiem

Image credit: Getty Images

Dominic Thiem has revealed that he is currently at "80%" fitness but does not feel quite ready to return to competitive tennis.

The Austrian had been due to make his come back from a wrist issue at the Mubadala Tennis Championship, but withdrew just days before the start of the event in Abu Dhabi.

It shaped as a further injury set back for the 2020 US Open champion, who missed most of the second half of this season after suffering the ailment.

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Yet Thiem struck a more optimistic tone, announcing that he is pain-free and was "close" to playing in the United Arab Emirates, but felt he would not be competitive at such a high-quality event.

"Of course I would have loved to play, but it was clear that it would be close," Thiem said. My whole process is going according to plan, I am absolutely pain-free, just lagging behind in punch training.

"Experience has shown that everyone plays at full capacity in Abu Dhabi. But I'm not ready for such matches yet, only face it when my forehand is at 100 percent. At the moment it is only 80 percent."

Thiem has been replaced in the draw by Great Britain's Dan Evans, who will face compatriot Andy Murray first up for the right to face Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals.

Thiem's focus will now shift to his preparation for the Australian Open, which begins on 17 January 2022 in Melbourne.

The 28-year-old confirmed that he will play at the year's first Grand Slam even if he is unable to play competitive matches ahead of the event.

"I will train here in Dubai for another week and fly to Sydney on December 22nd," Thiem said, outlining his forthcoming plans. "I will spend Christmas and New Year there, train a lot and then hopefully play at the ATP Cup.

"I might also play an ATP250 tournament before the Australian Open. But that depends on my development and the question of whether I still need match practice. But it's also clear that I would play Melbourne even if I couldn't play a single match beforehand.

"It's the first time I've had such a long break. Therefore, my expectations for Australia are not the highest. I have to see what it's like to play matches against the best of the best again. I am assuming that I will only be able to play my way deeper into the tournaments again in the course of the year."

Along with Thiem, Casper Ruud has also pulled out of the event in Abu Dhabi.

He has been replaced in the draw by Taylor Fritz.

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