Roger Federer's classy act after young gun's stunning upset
A disappointed Roger Federer paid Dominic Thiem a lovely tribute after being denied another record by the Austrian.
Thiem prevented Federer winning a record sixth Indian Wells title, beating the Swiss great 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 to claim his first ATP Masters 1000 crown.
The 25-year-old Austrian, ranked eighth in the world, had fallen in two prior Masters finals, both in Madrid.
But he rallied for a third career win over Federer in five meetings, his first over the Swiss on hard courts.
The moment @ThiemDomi secured his first @BNPPARIBASOPEN trophy!#BNPPO19 pic.twitter.com/BqnhQnkmP9
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 18, 2019
Thiem: 'First of all, Roger it's such a pleasure to still compete with you, to learn so much with you, to play with one of the biggest legends of all time, to play in a big final with you… it's amazing. It's not real for me.'
— George Bellshaw (@BellshawGeorge) March 18, 2019
Oh I cry 😭 CONGRATS DOMI ON YOUR FIRST MASTERS 1000 TITLE, INCREDIBLE EFFORT!!!!!! #BNPPO19 #thiem 🏆 pic.twitter.com/rxzE6MpJUj
— chouquettes (@cantonsoup) March 18, 2019
Dominic Thiem started his season with an illness and his 2019 record going into Indian Wells was 3-4 with losses to #55 Herbert, #149 Popyrin (Australian Open), Schwartzman and #90 Djere. Now he has the biggest title of his career.
Fortunes can change so quickly in this sport.
— Tumaini Carayol (@tumcarayol) March 18, 2019
Dominic Thiem has won his FIRST-EVER Masters title on a HARD COURT. A HARD COURT. Against five-time champion Roger Federer.
He’s also reclaimed his winning head to head vs Roger. And he’s back in the Top 4 of the ATP rankings.
I’m speechless.
— Rashmi #ThankYouNikolaj (@drivevolleys) March 18, 2019
Dominic Thiem wins the most significant title of his career, coming back to defeat Roger Federer 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 in the final of the BNP Paribas Open. Gets a handshake and a hug from Federer at the net
— Christopher Clarey (@christophclarey) March 18, 2019
Dream Thiem!@ThiemDomi @massunico #BNPPO19 pic.twitter.com/IVdmYRGsbq
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 18, 2019
Thiem earned the crucial break in the 11th game of the final set, connecting on two sharply angled passing winners to give himself a break point which he converted with a stinging forehand winner.
He sealed the match after two hours and two minutes when Federer’s backhand found the net and will now return to a career-high ranking of fourth in the world.
Federer was obviously disappointed after the match, but in a classy show of respect he congratulated Thiem on a “deserved” victory.
“It’s been a great week for me, even though it didn’t work out,” Federer said.
“Congratulations to Dominic — wonderful week and great play at the end. You deserved it.”
Thiem was equally as respectful in his post-match comments as he tried to come to terms with the magnitude of the victory.
“I think it’s not my right to congratulate you, you have 88 more titles than me,” Thiem told Federer as he accepted the trophy.
He’s the first Austrian to win a Masters 1000 title since Thomas Muster in Miami in 1997.
But he was under attack early, saving three break points before succumbing on a fourth in the second game as Federer raced to a 3-0 lead.
Federer led 4-1 before Thiem clawed a break back, but Federer responded with another hard-won break for a 5-3 lead and captured the set with a service winner.
Coming into the contest Federer had won 20 straight finals when claiming the opening set.
But Thiem was not about to go quietly, breaking Federer for a 3-1 lead as the Swiss suddenly couldn’t put a first serve in.
An authoritative hold put Thiem up 4-1 and on the way to forcing the third set, before holding his nerve in the decider to clinch the biggest win of his career.
It was the second year in a row that Federer was denied in the Indian Wells final. In 2018 he missed out on three championship points as he fell to Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro in the title match.
Federer, fresh off a remarkable 100th career title in Dubai, remains tied with Novak Djokovic for the most Indian Wells victories with five.
with agencies