Thiem claims US Open title after thrilling fightback
2020-09-14
Dominic Thiem of Austria celebrates his win over Alexander Zverev of Germany in the men's singles final match on day 14 of the 2020 US Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. [Photo/Agencies]
NEW YORK - Austria's Dominic Thiem finally claimed his first Grand Slam title with a stunning comeback to beat Germany's Alexander Zverev 2-6 4-6 6-4 6-3 7-6(6) in Sunday's US Open final.
The 27-year-old world number three, beaten in his first three Grand Slam finals, started as favourite but appeared to have blown his golden chance as he fell two sets behind.
Thiem, who had dropped only one set en route to the final, looked stifled by nerves early on but gradually broke the shackles to hit back from a break down to take the third.
Alexander Zverev of Germany hold the runner-up trophy following his loss in the men's singles final match against Dominic Thiem of Austria. [Photo/Agencies]
Zverev faltered on serve at 3-4 in a high-quality fourth set allowing Thiem to take the contest to a decider.
A limping Thiem trailed 5-3 in a high-quality decider but summoned some incredible baseline winners to take it into a nerve-jangling tiebreak. An astonishing climax saw Thiem squander two match points from 6-4 but when a third opportunity came Zverev fired wide after four hours and two minutes.
Reuters
Dominic Thiem of Austria embraces Alexander Zverev of Germany. [Photo/Agencies]
Dominic Thiem of Austria returns the ball in the fourth set during his Men's Singles final match. [Photo/Agencies]
Dominic Thiem of Austria serves the ball in the second set during his Men's Singles final match. [Photo/Agencies]
