WATCH: Dominic Thiem clutch play lands him first hard court win in 18 months
Dominic Thiem has marked another milestone on his road back to the top of the game by winning his first round match against JJ Wolf at the Winston-Salem Open.
The former world number three downed the American wildcard 6-7 (5-7), 7-5, 7-6 (8-6), saving two match points, to record his first win on a hard court since the Qatar Open in February 2021.
The result means Thiem now has eight wins from his last 11 ATP tour matches after going 13 months without a tour level win.
Currently ranked 231st in the world, the Austrian required a wildcard to compete in Winston-Salem, and will hope to further build his ranking at the ATP 250 event.
The win over Wolf sees Thiem provisionally up to 217th in the world ahead of a meeting with top seed Grigor Dimitrov next.
Should Thiem down the Bulgarian and go on to win the tournament he would certainly break back inside the world’s top 150
The 2020 US Open champion already has the comfort of a wildcard into this year’s event, his first time back in New York since winning the title there.
Domi Delights Down South 👊@domithiem saves 2 match points in a terrific win over Wolf 6-7 7-5 7-6, notching his first victory on a hard court in over 18 months!
Next up: Dimitrov 👀 #WSOpen pic.twitter.com/47DEVi5R1Z
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 23, 2022
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