Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev's Twitter exchange of sportsmanship floors netizens

There have been many legendary five-set wins in the history of Grand Slam tennis, but never before in the Open era has any men's singles player come down from two sets to love to win a championship title. Dominic Thiem’s US Open 2020 victory will always be remembered for this record being broken. It has been an odd, or some may say, historic US Open. From big names like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal pulling out, to hosting an entire tournament with no spectators, and the disqualification of the World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, there may never be a Grand Slam like this again. 

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Thiem US Open win historic, unique and emotional

Adding to the uniqueness of the US Open 2020 this year, Dominic Thiem has ushered in a new era of Grand Slam winners. After his heroic win over Alexander Zverev, he has become the first Grand Slam winner to be born in the 90s. He is also the first man outside of the ‘Big 3' to win a Slam since 2016. Thiem’s reaction after his win sums up exactly what this title means to him. It’s not just his first Grand Slam title, but one that he has been chasing for years.

As he said in his tweet, Dominic Thiem’s career has been one of massive ups and downs. Thiem won his first title as a pro in 2015 at the Open de Nice Côte d'Azur in France. The very next year, he broke into the top 10 ATP men’s rankings with his French Open semi-final appearance. He has not dropped below the No.10 in the rankings ever since, which is a testament to how well he has maintained his form. 

Dominic Thiem reached his first Grand Slam final in 2018 at the French Open. While he lost that match to the King of Clay, Rafael Nadal, it gave him the experience he needed to compete at the highest levels, with the creme de la creme of the game. He had a quick Round 1 exit at Wimbledon but reached the quarter-finals at the US Open later that year. 2019 again was a rollercoaster year for him. Thiem reached the final of the French Open for the second consecutive year but failed to make an impression in any of the other slams, crashing out in the first two rounds. Now at last, after being a Grand Slam runner-up thrice, Thiem has fought his way to his first Grand Slam win. 

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Thiem vs Zverev? Great rivalry but even greater friendship

Thiem has breezed past all his competitors at the US Open 2020. On his way to the final, he dropped only set, against Marin Čilić. Yet in the final, Thiem looked uneasy. In the first two sets, he made more double faults than Zverev, who has the dubious record of having made the most double faults at the US Open 2020. His first serve rate in the first set was just 37%.

Zverev was quick to capitalise on the faults, setting himself up 6-2, 6-4. It was somewhere in the third set, where according to Thiem’s post-match interview, he thought to himself that he couldn’t lose a final that he was the favourite to win. So he went back up and scripted one of the greatest comebacks in tennis finals history, making himself part of an esteemed club of US Open Men’s Singles Champions. 

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Despite the great rivalry on court, Thiem and Zverev were both all praises for each other at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. After his win, Thiem took the chance to heap praise on Zverev and his team, saying he wished the match could have two winners. He also told the 23-year-old Zverev that he would definitely go on to win the US Open. In the first physical gesture of camaraderie shown at the US Open this year, Zverev and Thiem also shared a heartwarming hug at the end of the four-hour-long match. 

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Image Credits: US Open Twitter